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The figure of 32,000 short-term lets quoted in our BRIA relates to Airbnb listings, and is taken from our independent research on the impact of short-term lets on communities, which was published in October 2019:

The research was based on data provided by InsideAirbnb, dated May 2019. Of the 32,000 Airbnb listings across Scotland, 69.2% were entire homes, 30.3% were private rooms, and 0.4% were shared rooms.

We do not have a breakdown of these listings by type of premises. Our licensing scheme will provide data on the types of short-term let and premises being used in Scotland.

(a) & (c) The latest set of annual statistics on the number of Long Term Empty Properties and Second Homes, based on Council Tax Base data as at September 2020, were published in the Housing Statistics Quarterly Update in December 2020, and are available at: , with detailed local authority level Excel tables covering the period from 1996 to 2020 available at . Figures are split into the categories of Long Term Empty Properties and Second Homes, however are not available broken down by housing tenure.

The latest annual figures show that there were 47,333 Long Term Empty properties and 24,466 Second Homes, across all tenures, as at September 2020. In addition, there were 44,143 Unoccupied Exemptions, generally properties which are empty and unfurnished for less than 6 months and exempt from paying council tax.

(b) The Scottish Housing Regulator publish figures on the number of vacant self-contained lettable social housing properties, with most recent data as at end June 2021 available as part of the Covid-19 dashboards at: , and with previous annual data published as part of annual Charter Data figures for 2014/15 to 2018/19 at:

The latest Scottish Housing Regulator figures on vacant self-contained lettable social housing stock show that there were 8,886 empty social sector homes (including 5,311 local authority homes and 3,575 housing association homes) as at the end of June 2021. There will always be vacant social housing stock at any point of time as social landlords prepare homes in advance of them being re-allocated. Social landlords, as part of meeting the Scottish Social Housing Charter, strive to provide an efficient and effective management of their housing services. This includes minimising the time houses are empty. Latest published figures from the Scottish Housing Regulator show that the average time to re-let a social housing property in the quarter April to June 2021 was 52 calendar days (an average of 62 days for local authority properties, and 41 days for housing association properties).

The Scottish Government also collects information on vacant stock from local authorities as part of annual statistical returns, which covers all types of local authority vacant stock, including lettable stock, as well as stock used as temporary accommodation for the homeless, stock awaiting demolition or modernisation, and stock in low demand areas. However the figures exclude local authorities which have transferred their stock to Housing Associations (Argyll and Bute, Dumfries and Galloway, Glasgow City, Inverclyde,Na h-Eileanan Siar and the Scottish Borders). Latest annual statistics for 2019, by type of stock and length of vacancy, are published at , with detailed local authority level Excel tables available at: .

The latest available Scottish Government annual statistics on local authority vacant housing stock show that there were 7,409 vacant local authority dwellings as at end March 2019. This includes 2,782 normal letting stock dwellings, 476 dwellings used as temporary accommodation for the homeless, 2,208 dwellings awaiting demolition, 1,430 dwellings forming part of a modernisation scheme, and 513 dwellings in low demand areas.

(d) The draft Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment (BRIA) on Short-term lets: licensing scheme and planning control area legislation published for consultation on 25 June 2021, available at: , sets out the available information on number of short-term lets, which includes self-catering properties. The BRIA estimates that there are approximately 32,000 short-term lets in Scotland, based on research in 2019, but also highlights the challenges in gauging the full size of the short-term lets market, which includes accommodation ranging from single rooms, whole homes and unconventional accommodation.

In June 2021, there were approximately 17,850 premises registered on the Non-Domestic Rates roll as self-catering properties. This figure is from the self-catering units on the Assessor’s valuation roll. The Scottish Government does not routinely publish summaries of the valuation roll as it is a live administrative dataset which is publicly searchable on the Scottish Assessors Association website, available at:

The Scottish Government does not hold information on the number of council tax registered premises used for self-catering purposes.

The following table contains details of instances over the last five financial years where the Scottish Government has waived the Right to Recover Housing Association Grant on previously grant funded projects and where the grant was not recycled within the Affordable Housing Supply Programme.

Details of the £10 million grant fund scheme - announced by the Deputy First Minister on 22 June to help tenants who have been financially impacted by the pandemic and are facing homelessness - are being developed at pace and we will provide further information on the delivery and applications process for the fund in due course.

The Scottish Government has not received specific reports of scammers exploiting the new fire alarm standard. We are, however, recognise that the risk of people falling victim to a scam remains a possibility The Scottish Government launched a comprehensive awareness raising campaign about the new standard on 19 August 2021. This campaign includes messaging on the importance of using reputable tradespeople, looking out for trademarks that products that comply with the new standard as well as signposting to local government Trading Standards teams for further advice and to report suspicious activities.

We are committed to taking action to ensure the housing market operates more fairly across Scotland, providing affordable housing options and choices in all communities. Housing to 2040 , Scotland’s vision for housing to 2040, includes a commitment that before the end of this year, we will have undertaken an analysis of what is required to gather more comprehensive data on the Scottish private rented sector (PRS), setting out our intentions for mechanisms by the end of 2021.

An analysis of what is required in order to collect more comprehensive data on the PRS will underpin our approach. We are considering all options, including current or potential PRS data systems.

As set out in Housing to 2040, it is our intention to explore all possible solutions afresh, including the development of any new systems, with a view to seeking stakeholder views as part of a consultation on our wider Rented Sector Strategy in 2022.

The answers to each part of this question are as follows:

• In respect of (a)(i) (housing developments currently connected to residential district heating networks): this information is not held centrally.
• In respect of (b)(ii) – (homes currently connected residential district heating networks): the most recent data held is from 31 December 2018, when there were 29,647 known domestic connections to Scottish heating networks (including communal heating).
• In respect of (a)(i) (housing developments that will (in the future) be connected to residential district heating networks): this information is not held centrally.
• In respect of (b)(ii) (homes that will (in the future) be connected to residential district heating networks): this information is not held centrally.

The data currently held on heat networks comes from data collected by the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) under the Heat Metering and Billing Regulations. Heat network operators are required to notify every 4 years. The latest data held is for 2018. Figures for 2019 and 2020 are not yet available.

Regarding future developments, planning applications for individual homes and housing developments are taken by planning authorities in the first instance. Where planning permission is granted there is no requirement to notify the Scottish Government or the Scottish Ministers of the decision. While the Scottish Government does collect some information on the performance of planning authorities this does not break down into details of individual applications.

The Heat Networks (Scotland) Act sets statutory heat network deployment targets, requiring 2.6 terawatt hours of output by 2027 and 6 terawatt hours by 2030. The targets are broadly equivalent to 120,000 and 400,000 average gas using homes being connected to heat networks for 2027 and 2030 respectively.? As heat networks are generally anchored around large non-domestic buildings, which account for significant portion of heat supplies, these figures should only be considered illustrative.

The review of the operation of the Rural and Islands Housing Fund has been completed and in response to the questions asked (a) The Scottish Government engaged with Local Authorities, Registered Social Landlords, funding scheme participants, a rural housing sounding board who had helped inform the original guidance of the Rural and Islands Housing Fund and other stakeholders with an interest in rural and island housing. There was overwhelming support that the fund should continue, (b) we are currently preparing a report summarising the findings of the engagement with stakeholders and (c) the report will be published shortly.