One of the key issues I face daily is the problem of providing housing for those residents that are homeless or simply seeking a house to rent or buy for themselves and for their families.

This has become a number one priority within the council and just recently I set up a dedicated action group of senior staff members to make the priority an actual outcome and provide homes for our residents who are in need.

I have been meeting with many providers and developers over the past few months and together with the action group we are now entering a delivery phase for homes.

We have identified and set aside land that is mostly brownfield land – that is land already built on previously – and published ten sites that are available for developers to bid on and bring forward their own suggestions.

The list of available sites is being worked on and we intend to publish a list of a further ten sites to add to the land we are making available for housing.

There are a range of interested providers and we have been discussing traditional buildings, all sustainable designs, timber framed homes at net zero sustainable construction, modular homes which are built on the Island and can be erected very quickly once the land infrastructure is in place.

We are seeking partnerships and private developers and open to all offers that bring forward the homes we need for our Island residents.

Of course, one of the key demands is that we maximise our land, that developments are sustainable and are appropriate in the areas they are being built but they must be affordable homes.

Affordable is a term that Government describe as being 80 per cent of the local market rate for sale or rent.

That is a start for us, but we have aspirations to do even better.

We are trying to use 80 per cent as the start point and get down to 70 per cent of the local market rate.

Financially that is a tricky thing to do especially under current interest rates if we borrow to build and the inflation busting costs of building materials.

So, part of the work of the action group is to bring forward the land, develop and build out homes through a range of schemes, partnerships and mechanisms, provide fast track planning consents so that work gets started quickly and we get the right homes in the right place at the right cost for our residents in need.

I will be making some public announcements in the coming months on when these homes will be ready for occupation.

Sustainable Island homes for Island residents built to meet our needs and at an affordable cost and meeting our promises to the Island.