[WATCH] Social housing plans review adds 500 more units

The stock of social housing units will increase by another 500 as the government upgrades plans announced last February.

A further investment of €10 million from the passport fund will add 500 more units to the 500 already announced last February. The total investment from the Individual Investor Programme will tot up to €60 million.

The new units will be built on the same sites indicated last February after “an optimisation exercise”.

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat described this as the largest ever social housing investment.

He said better planning would see the construction of a total of 1,725 social housing units.

Muscat reiterated that the government would implement new measures to bar the inheritance of social housing.

He said new rent rules would be announced shortly, but the government will not be adopting a “heavy-handed” approach.

The rules are expected to offer incentives to landlords if they rent property according to established parameters, but the government will enforce the registration of rental contracts.