West Lothian housing crisis causing 'misery and despair' after half of targets missed

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Concerns have been raised over a crisis in West Lothian’s housing department after a report revealed half of its current performance targets have been have been missed in the last three months.The opposition SNP branded the Labour-led administration “unfit to run the service” and said the failed targets were bringing “misery and despair”.In the last three months of 2022 the council failed to meet its targets on the percentage of homeless applications processed within 28 days - 37% when the target is 80% - as well as the length of time it takes to re-let properties and the number of new build properties completed.It also fell down on repairs and on customer complaints.Labour councillors defended their running of the service and said they had ‘no control’ over many of the issues causing the problems, and insisted other councils were facing similar concerns.The grim update was delivered by housing officer Kirsty Weir to a recent meeting of the Housing Services Policy development and Scrutiny Panel (PDSP).SNP Depute group leader Robert De Bold told the meeting: “This performance report makes for disappointing reading.

We have six metrics outwith acceptable standards. There are only ten. Five of these are categorised as red.“It would appear this administration can’t build houses, can’t report them, can’t access people when they are homeless, can’t re-let houses when they become available.

We are then unsurprisingly inundated with complaints.“Frankly this administration are unfit to run this service and blind to the fact that their mismanagement causes real misery and despair.”Labour councillors rounded on Councillor De Bold.