A total of 30,000 'affordable' Scottish homes have been delivered ahead of schedule, it has been announced.

The Scottish Government has exceeded its five-year target of delivering 30,000 properties by March 2016. Total funding for the scheme was £1.7bn.

In addition, 20,000 social rented homes – including 5,000 council homes – have also been delivered.

Social Justice Secretary Alex Neil said: "I am delighted that we have now met our commitment to deliver 30,000 affordable homes ahead of our target date of March 2016.

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"Despite a challenging financial environment, we have invested in excess of £1.7 billion to meet the target, reintroduced council house building and protected existing housing stock through abolishing the right to buy.

"High quality, energy efficient, affordable homes form the cornerstone of socially and economically sustainable communities.

"We have worked hard with the housing sector to deliver these homes as well as develop innovative funding initiatives, such as government guarantees, loans, grant recycling and new sources of private funding, to help both buyers and developers."

(LM/JP)