Thursday, December 13, 2018 - 11:28

Opinion by together GIBRALTAR

The principle of providing opportunities for every person in our community to own his/her own home is one that Together Gibraltar emphatically endorses. The local housing market is distorted by the limited space available to build in and by the structure of our economy (Cat 2 status purchases) resulting in the costs of houses having spiralled up to levels most cannot afford.

It is the Government’s responsibility to provide our people with housing they can afford. While perhaps well intended, the current Government has missed the mark in failing to provide opportunities for those who are unable to aspire to private home ownership on the open market.

In the case of the newly released plans for the Hassan Tercentenary Terraces development, the low paid who genuinely need affordable housing would still struggle to meet their monthly mortgage repayments (if they could obtain a mortgage). This includes families who have outgrown the size of their home, families on the housing list, divorcees and especially those on extended supply contracts or zero hour contracts (agency workers).