Students must not be abandoned by Housing Bill
The Scottish Government will be abandoning students to the ‘wild west’ of the student accommodation market if they do not include support for students in the Housing (Scotland) Bill, says Scottish Green MSP Maggie Chapman.
During a committee meeting yesterday, Shirley-Anne Somerville, Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, confirmed that the Scottish Government has no intention to include the purpose built student accommodation (PBSA) sector in the Housing Bill.
This follows MSPs voting to ensure student accommodation could be covered by rent control regulations only last week, with calls supported by MSPs from the Scottish Greens, Conservatives, and Labour.
Ms Chapman said:
“I’m disappointed and angry that the Scottish Government has decided to leave students out in the cold on the Housing Bill. Only last year they publicly committed to legislate on student accommodation, but now seem to be abandoning their commitments to students all together. [1]
“The student accommodation market is currently an unregulated wild west, and we should not allow this to continue. PBSA providers, companies who often provide just the bare minimum to students, often snatch up potential sites that should be used for family homes and community facilities too. We desperately need regulation of this sector.
“We’ve been listening to students and housing campaigners and they’ve been clear: the market is broken. Students across Scotland are paying on average over 80% of their loan on poor quality and insecure PBSA housing, because the Scottish Government has yet to engage with stakeholders on alternative solutions. [2]“I hope that the Cabinet Secretary reconsiders her statement and helps us to fight for students in this housing bill. We have had too many years of an unregulated, unsustainable, and unaffordable housing market in Scotland. It’s time we make it fair and affordable for everyone.”
Notes:
[1] In February 2024, the Scottish Government commit in the chamber to take forward recommendations from the PBSA Review Group, which had significant student input, which is shown here: Written question and answer: S6W-25244 | Scottish Parliament Website
[2] The statistic on PBSA cost is sourced from this NUS research showing the state of student housing: Towards a Student Housing Strategy for Scotland - NUS Scotland