Thousands of Scots struggling to save for first home secretly barred from government's help to buy scheme
Dawn Ramsay, a Dundee-based mortgage broker, said the rule change was a 'kick in the teeth' for first time buyers
'kick in the teeth' Thousands of Scots struggling to save for first home secretly barred from government's help to buy scheme
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
MOST first-time buyers have been quietly banned from an SNP government scheme to help people get on the housing ladder.
The Open Market Shared Equity scheme allows people to pay for as little as 60 per cent of a sale price, with the state buying the rest.
Sign up for Scottish Sun
newsletter
Sign up
1
Most first-time buyers have been quietly banned from the SNP help to buy scheme
Credit: Alamy
It had mostly been used by first-time buyers on lower incomes.
But now first-time buyers have been locked out of the scheme unless they fit into a 'priority' group such as social renters or people with disabilities.
Data obtained by the BBC shows that the majority of the scheme's past users did not belong to any of the priority groups.
Dawn Ramsay, a Dundee-based mortgage broker, said the rule change was a 'kick in the teeth' for first time buyers.
She said: 'It pushes the house price up because there could be five or six people looking at a property, and some of them may well have financial backing where they can pay over the asking price for that property.
'It's not a level playing field. These are the people that will keep our housing market moving.'
And Scottish Tory shadow housing secretary Meghan Gallacher said: 'This is typical of the sleekit SNP. No wonder they didn't people knowing they had quietly ditched this flagship scheme during a housing emergency that has spiralled on their watch.
'SNP ministers appear hellbent on turning their noses up at those with aspirations of getting on the property ladder with short-sighted decisions like this.'
Last year, 182 out of 210 successful OMSE purchases were made by first-time buyers with just six per cent in the priority groups.
The scheme does not allow househunters to bid over the asking price so low-income buyers are frequently outbid by those that can afford to pay over the odds for property, particularly investors.
Homeowners blast 'tone-deaf' plan by billionaire to build massive resort & rename town as they insist it'll 'destroy' it
The scheme opened in 2007 and was mostly used by low-income first-time buyers seeking a way out of private lets or family homes.
The Scottish Government declared a national housing emergency in May last year pledging to increase housing supply and tackle homelessness, with more than four in 10 Scots struggling to meet housing costs.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: 'Supporting social renters to make the transition to affordable home ownership will help free up social rented accommodation, which in turn could help families move out of temporary accommodation.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
STEPHEN DAISLEY: We're governed by a born-to-rule elite...and the WhatsApp scandal shows EXACTLY how out of touch they are
Against stiff competition, one of the most outrageous happenings inside Nicola Sturgeon 's government was the routine deletion of messages during the Covid-19 pandemic. The revelation came in evidence before the UK inquiry into the management of the global health crisis. One after another, senior figures in the Scottish Government admitted they had deleted WhatsApps and other messages. Sturgeon had erased her digital missives and so had John Swinney. National clinical director Jason Leitch described 'WhatsApp deletion' as 'a pre-bed ritual'. Senior civil servant Ken Thomson posted on message threads that their contents were 'discoverable under FOI' and advised: 'Know where the "clear chat" button is.' In office, Sturgeon seldom missed an opportunity to highlight where Scotland's government was outperforming England's, but here was one regard in which she was happy to be unexceptional. Senior Westminster figures got rid of their messages and their Holyrood counterparts were no better. Why am I raking up this ancient history when the world is exploding all around us? Well, because an important announcement was slipped out on Friday - usually a quiet day in Scottish politics - and I think it deserves a little noise. Deputy first minister Kate Forbes confirmed that her ban on ministers and civil servants using unofficial messaging apps to do official business was now in effect. The prohibition was initially trailed before Christmas and reflects concern about rules and practices at the height of the pandemic. Now, six months on, WhatsApp and similar platforms have been removed from government-issued phones, with the (common sense) exception of services that deal with public safety and emergencies, which will get longer to make the transition. Speaking on Friday, Forbes said: 'The use of mobile messaging apps increased during the pandemic as staff worked remotely in unprecedented and difficult circumstances. Having reflected on our working practices, we are now implementing changes to the use of such apps.' However, the Scottish Government should not be allowed to issue a lowkey update and then press on with other business. Let's recall how we got here. Because ministers aren't alone in having 'reflected' on their working practices. In addition to Lady Hallett's inquiry, and the negative public response to top officials wiping their communications archives, message retention was put under the microscope in the Martins Report. Former Channel Islands Information Commissioner Emma Martins was tasked with reviewing the Scottish Government's information protocols and what she found was lamentable. There was 'little to evidence a consistent and widespread knowledge, understanding, or application' of the policy on messaging apps, 'including rules around retention, exportation, and deletion'. There was 'insufficient evidence of a proactive strategy' on records management and 'an abundance of missed opportunities and early warning signs'. Martins concluded that it was 'impossible to take any comfort from the policy'. The report recommended a fresh approach to messaging apps that ensured 'all government communication is conducted in a managed environment' and that systems have 'appropriate security and data retention facilities'. Banishing external communications platforms from government phones is certainly a step in the right direction, but why is it a step that's needed at all? It's no coincidence that the minister rolling out these changes is one of the few who did the right thing when it came to pandemic-era communications. Whatever else her critics might say about her, Forbes understood her obligations to transparency and public accountability. Even after she was told to begin deleting messages with her private office two years after the outset of the pandemic, she retained all WhatsApps to and from Cabinet colleagues and government officials. Her integrity meant Lady Hallett's inquiry was able to access conversations at the most senior levels that would otherwise have been lost to the erase button. But that same integrity must compel the deputy first minister to be honest about this policy. Among the various security and data protection advantages of in-house communications networks, there is also the greater monitoring capability they hand to administrators. In plain language: it's harder for a user to delete messages from an in-house system than from WhatsApp or Telegram. On the most charitable reading of this policy, it's an admission that those in the most senior roles in the Scottish Government are inept in the proper use and storage of communications. A less charitable reading is that the Scottish Government does not trust its personnel, ministers and civil servants alike, not to scrub information that could be of national importance. That is a desperate state of affairs. As Emma Martins stated in her report, 'something went wrong for the Scottish Government' and the issue was one that 'runs much deeper than a single policy document or checklist'. An organisation, she said, needed 'those operating within it to share a basic set of values'. Abiding by the rules was 'not a tick box exercise' but 'a way of thinking', which must be 'embedded into everything', not to avoid 'the threat of sanction' but because 'it is the right thing to do'. Tel:ling ministers and officials to use only permitted messaging systems, to treat data with care, to retain communications or log their salient points - these are all well and good but the very fact that the people running the country need to be told this speaks to an institutional problem inside the Scottish Government. Systems and safeguards are only as good as the willingness of those who use them to abide by their spirit as well as their letter. The citizenry should feel reassured that public servants have the integrity to do the right thing without needing it spelled out to them. That they are storing messages properly because they recognise their obligations to scrutiny and transparency, not because a spreadsheet is monitoring their compliance. Kate Forbes did the right thing during the pandemic but her messaging policy can only succeed if there are enough like her in government, and that seems unlikely. A government marinated in spin and cynicism for so long isn't about to mend its way because of new rules. You need people in public life who are there for the right reasons. After 18 years of the SNP in charge, transparency and openness have been thoroughly sidelined. Going through the motions is not the same as genuine accountability, it's working to a policy rather than a moral principle. This administration talks a lot about its commitment to open government but time and again it is shown to be a hollow promise. We have a born-to-rule elite with altogether more confidence in their abilities than is merited and this arrogance has engendered a conviction that the public deserves to know only what their betters want them to know. This is no way to run a democratic government, but it is not a problem that can be tweaked away. It can be addressed only by a blunt and bracing assessment of the calibre of politicians and policymakers coming into Holyrood and a conversation about how we can do better. The WhatsApp deletion scandal was a low moment for devolved government in Scotland but it would be foolhardy to assume that the problem has been solved. Holyrood requires a new culture of integrity, transparency and accountability. The work of creating this culture cannot be undertaken by those responsible for the past two decades. It calls for a new government under new leadership.
Scottish Sun
an hour ago
- Scottish Sun
Scots council blasted after tearing down schoolkids' banners protesting bike path closure
Angry parents hit out at the local authority 'DISGUSTING' Scots council blasted after tearing down schoolkids' banners protesting bike path closure Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) COUNCIL chiefs have been accused of 'censoring' kids who put up banners in a bid to save a cycle path. Staff were told to paint over signs 10-year-olds had created to protest against plans to extend Edinburgh's controversial tram project. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Locals started a campaign to save the route after the local authority announced their plans Credit: Thomas Brown 3 The colourful signs on display on the Roseburn Path in Edinburgh Credit: Thomas Brown 3 Angry parents have hit out at the "disgusting" move But when the artwork was replaced by P7 pupils at the city's Blackhall Primary, killjoy officials had them removed from the area's Roseburn Path. An angry parent hit out: 'Why the council would want to censor kids is unthinkable. 'They were just making their voices heard. It's disgusting.' Locals started a campaign to save the route after the local authority announced their plans last year. The path is home to badgers, foxes and deer. It's also used by hundreds every day to commute or travel to and from school away from busy roads. Ed Thornley, leader of the capital's Lib Dem group, said: 'Removing signs the schoolkids painted seems to be heartless.' But the council's education convener James Dalgleish said: 'There are sensitivities around this topic and how the opinions of pupils are expressed. 'The artwork was created outwith the class curriculum and during lunchtimes.'
Scottish Sun
2 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Incredible satellite pics show the aftermath of ‘devastating' strikes on Iranian nuclear bases after massive US blitz
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) ASTONISHING satellite pictures have emerged of the aftermath of the US's "devastating" strikes on Iranian nuclear bases. Operation Midnight saw the US blitz three of Iran's key nuclear facilities in an attack Trump has called a "spectacular success". Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 11 A new series of satellite images has revealed the precision of the US attacks on Iran's primary nuclear facility Credit: maxar technologies 11 Two clusters of six craters show where the bombs were dropped Credit: maxar technologies 11 The Isfahan nuclear technology in Iran before U.S. strikes Credit: AP 11 Six B-2 stealth bombers descended over Iran Bunker buster bombs were dropped on the Fordow enrichment plant - a heavily guarded site buried deep beneath a mountain near the city of Qom. Also hit were the nuclear plants at Natanz and Isfahan, which Israel had already targeted with its own missiles. US submarines also launched around 30 Tomahawk missiles in a coordinated air-and-sea operation. Trump declared that the Fordow plant is now "gone" and all the night's targets were "obliterated". Satellite imagery of the destroyed bases has since revealed the extent of the damage. Two clusters of at least six holes are seen at the Fordow nuclear site, where the massive 30,000-pound bunker buster bombs were dropped. Bombs of this kind are believed to be able to penetrate about 200 feet below the surface before exploding. Following the bombing, Sir Keir Starmer reinstated his commitment to making Iran nuke-free. He, along with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, released a joint statement following the US bombings on Iran. It read: "We have discussed the latest developments in the Middle East earlier today. We reiterate our commitment to peace and stability for all countries in the region. We affirm our support for the security of Israel. "We have consistently been clear that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon and can no longer pose a threat to regional security. "Earlier today, the United States conducted targeted military strikes against nuclear facilities in Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. Our aim continues to be to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. "We call upon Iran to engage in negotiations leading to an agreement that addresses all concerns associated with its nuclear program. We stand ready to contribute to that goal in coordination with all parties. "We urge Iran not to take any further action that could destabilise the region. We will continue our joint diplomatic efforts to defuse tensions and ensure the conflict does not intensify and spread further." US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said Operation Midnight Hammer was 'an incredible and overwhelming success' that took months and weeks of planning. He added Trump has been clear that "any retaliation by Iran" against the US would be "met with force far greater" than what was seen on Saturday night. Hegseth said: 'Iran would be smart to heed those words. He's said it before, and he means it.' The Defence Secretary went on to praise the US leader, calling it "bold and brilliant, showing the world that American deterrence is back". He urged: "When this President speaks, the world should listen." US warns it WILL strike again and world 'should listen to Trump' Iran's foreign minister Abbas Arghchi has said he is going to Russia today to meet mad leader Putin. He revealed: 'I'm going to Moscow this afternoon, and I have a meeting with President Putin tomorrow morning.' Arghchi called Moscow a 'friend of Iran,' adding 'we always consult with each other'. Fears loom that the conflict could spiral into a world war, with Putin puppet Dmitry Medvedev making a veiled threat to supply Iran with nuclear weapons. He said: "A number of countries are ready to directly supply Iran with their nuclear weapons." After declaring the US strikes as being a success, Trump warned that further action could be taken if Tehran doesn't agree to an adequate peace deal. He said in a nationally televised speech at the White House: "Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If they do not, future attacks will be far greater and a lot easier." "There will be either peace or there will be tragedy for Iran far greater than we have witnessed over the last eight days." 11 A closer satellite view shows holes and craters on a ridge at Fordow underground Credit: Reuters 11 President Donald Trump speaks from the East Room of the White House in Washington after the strikes 11 Trump addressed the world after announcing the strikes 'Remember there are many targets left. Tonight's was the most difficult of them all, by far, and perhaps the most lethal. 'But if peace does not come quickly we will go after those other targets with precision, speed and skill. 'Most of them can be taken out in a matter of minutes. There's no military in the world that could have done what we did tonight." And shortly after speaking on-camera, he posted to Truth Social: "This cannot continue. There will be either peace or there will be tragedy for Iran far greater than we have witnessed over the last eight days. "Remember, there are many targets left. Tonight's was the most difficult of them all, by far, and perhaps the most lethal. "But if peace does not come quickly we will go after those other targets with precision, speed and skill." Meanwhile Iran's foreign minister Abbas Arghchi dubbed the strikes "outrageous and will have everlasting consequences". He also called the military action "a grave violation of the UN Charter, international law and the NPT by attacking Iran's peaceful nuclear installations". 11 Imagery shows where the bombs likely entered before pummelling Credit: maxar technologies 11 The Isfahan nuclear technology center in Iran after U.S. bombardment Credit: AP 11 Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant in Iran before the US blitz
