Homes for Scotland (HFS), which represents the builders delivering most of the country's new homes, has welcomed the direction outlined in the First Minister's Programme for Government, saying the planned overhaul of Scotland's planning and regulatory systems is a positive step.

The Programme for Government sets ambitions for the new five-year parliamentary session to make Scotland a better place to invest and do business, help more firms to start, scale and innovate, and connect people to better work.

HFS Chief Executive Jane Wood said: "With Scotland now in the third year of a housing emergency and both starts and completions continuing to decline, it is encouraging to see housing remain central to the First Minister's thinking. Not only does it support his defining mission of eradicating child poverty, it is also crucial to economic growth on which wider social policy goals depend.

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"The First Minister has made clear that reform of the planning and regulatory landscape will underpin the progress he wants to achieve. This, together with the principle of 'regulate last, regulate simply and regulate flexibly' has our full support, but strong leadership is essential to deliver meaningful change.

"The significance of his commitment to have attitudes rooted in 'yes, if' rather than 'no, because' cannot therefore be underestimated. That cultural shift is urgently needed if Scotland is to overcome the barriers preventing much-needed homes from being built."

Wood's comments follow a LinkedIn post earlier this week highlighting mounting frustration among businesses at the increasingly difficult conditions for delivering new homes, with one contributor describing rural SME home builders as "fighting for their lives".

Wood added: "The First Minister has set a welcome direction, but there is no time to lose in rewiring the system. We need to see barriers removed, investment maximised and these commitments translated quickly into practical action.

"The home building sector stands ready to support this work. We must now move forward together with renewed purpose and urgency if we are to increase housing delivery and bring Scotland's housing emergency to an end."