In a letter to the First Minister, the Glasgow and West of Scotland Forum of Housing Associations (GWSF) said that on top of restoring the cut, all possible ways of increasing the programme need to be explored.

The letter says GWSF members remain extremely keen to continue supporting the new build and acquisitions programme, and it includes ten recent examples of outstanding developments completed across the Forum’s area.

Suggesting that new approvals have been dwindling since the programme’s peak between 2018 and 2020, the letter says that councils would have no difficulty at all spending a much increased budget, with a healthy pipeline of projects now on hold after the 26% cut announced in December 2023.

GWSF chair John Hamilton said: “Restoring the cut is the very least that’s needed if the First Minister is serious about helping people out of poverty and getting anywhere near the 110,000 homes target: at current approval rates we’ll be lucky to see 50-60% of that target reached by 2032.

“The wholly unexpected cut to this year’s programme meant most councils had already fully committed their budgets and so aren’t able to make any new approvals. Our members have projects ready to progress but which are now stalled.

“The fantastic examples we’ve featured in our letter – and we could have included many more – serve to demonstrate to the First Minister that our members stand ready to help restore the programme to a level which is commensurate with what’s now an increasingly ambitious target.”