PRIVATE landlords in Scotland have made billions of pounds from housing benefit claimants in five years according to official figures.

Glasgow Labour MSP, Pauline McNeill, obtained details of the spend in rent payments made to the private sector and warned it is more proof of the need for investment in affordable housing.

The figures show that 25% of all payments have been made to a private landlord since 2011.

In the last year available, 2015/16, housing benefit payments in Scotland to all landlords totalled £1.77bn.

Of that £433.8m was paid out to private landlords, 25.3% of the total.

The amount and percentage has stayed stable for the last five years at around a quarter of all the cash going to private landlords.

The total bill for the last five years for housing benefit paid to private sector landlords reached £2.23bn out of the total spend of £8.83bn.

Ms McNeill said it meant taxpayers cash was funding the lifestyles of private landlords instead of being invested in housing.

She said :”Our social security spending should be supporting out most vulnerable people, not boosting the profit margins of private landlords.”

She said Labour wanted the private rented sector reformed and action taken on “rip-off” rent rises.

Ms McNeill, added: “It is clear we need to build more homes. Labour wants to build 60,000 over the next five years with 45,000 for rent through a council or housing association. With waiting lists for homes stretching into the decades we need a change of direction from the SNP Government.”

The Scottish Government has a target of delivering 50,000 new affordable homes in the next five years.

The Scottish Budget last week stated: “Government investment in housing, in partnership with councils, housing associations and developers will on average leverage economic activity in the region of£1.7bn per year, supporting around 14,000 jobs in the construction and related industries in Scotland.”

The budget for housing is £728.4m, with 583.6m earmarked for “more homes”.