A bid to reconsider declaring a housing crisis in Dundee has been blocked for a second time by the council’s SNP administration.
Last month, councillors threw out the initial bid to declare a local housing emergency.
Within days the Scottish Government announced a nationwide emergency during a Labour-led debate at Holyrood.
The council’s opposition group called on the administration to reverse the decision, which they say has put it “at odds” with its own government
Labour group leader Kevin Keenan asked for standing orders to be suspended so his motion to declare a housing crisis could be reconsidered.
It is council rule that there must be a gap of six months before a motion can be brought back before elected members to be reconsidered.
However, the SNP administration has now thrown out the bid for a second time.
At a neighbourhood regeneration, housing and estate management committee this week it refused to suspend standing orders.
Councillor Keenan slammed the decision as “single-minded politics.”
“The SNP administration, despite their own government accepting that there is a housing emergency, refused to suspend standing orders which would have allowed councillors to debate this subject at committee,” said Councillor Keenan.
“Myself and colleagues in the Labour group see housing as the biggest issue in the city and the majority of correspondence between ourselves and our constituents predominantly relates to housing.
“The Scottish Government accept that Scotland is facing a housing emergency – why is the SNP administration in Dundee continuing to say move along, nothing to see here?
“Surely, our citizens in Dundee, when in need, deserve a council that will act in their best interests?”
SNP administration block bid
However, neighbourhood regeneration, housing and estate management convener Mark Flynn led the call to block the housing emergency bid for a second time,
The councillor has insisted that “nothing has changed” since the original decision was made.
Mr Flynn said: “Dundee has got challenges like any other local authority and I accept that but we have also got plans in place.
“I’m really confident that officers are addressing all the challenges that we can address locally, and once they are exhausted and we are still in this situation, we will then look again at whether to reconsider declaring an emergency.
“But then the question is what difference does that make to the challenges we have got in front of us.
“We’ve got a plan and the plan has been put in place to address homelessness as best we can locally, to address voids as best we can locally, and hopefully get our voids down to pre-Covid levels and then continuing from that.”
