Shariah-compliant housing finance could solve Scotland’s housing shortage

Ministers are considering asking Muslim investors to help fund social housing in Scotland to ease pressure on the government’s budget.

The Islamic Finance Council, which promotes the use of finance from Muslim sources in Scotland, is to meet Alex Neil, the housing minister, to discuss how Muslim wealth could be used to develop shared-ownership homes, in accordance with the principles of sharia — Islamic law.

The partnership could potentially save the Scottish government millions of pounds at a time when its budget is under unprecedented pressure because of the recession, and lead to a rise in the availability of affordable homes.