Swinney Announces £100M Fund for Young Home Buyers

John Swinney, Scotland's First Minister and leader of the Scottish National Party, announced a plan on Friday to establish a £100 million First Homes Fund aimed at helping young people afford deposits on their first homes, ahead of the party's final conference before the May election.

The initiative, contingent on the SNP's re-election, would provide up to £10,000 in support for first-time buyers, targeting those trapped in high rental costs. Swinney described the policy as a means to address barriers to home ownership exacerbated by rising living expenses. "Everyone dreams of buying their first home but for too many people, particularly young people, it has had to stay a dream as the reality of Westminster's cost-of-living crisis means saving up for a deposit is just too hard," he said during the announcement.

The proposed fund builds on a pilot program that assisted more than 10,000 home purchases through deposit support between 2019 and 2022. Under the expanded effort, officials aim to benefit 50,000 households by the end of the next parliamentary session. Swinney highlighted the financial pressures facing younger generations, noting that many pay more in rent than they would...