More than 200 people have been on the waiting list for social housing for over 10 years, Social Accommodation Minister Roderick Galdes said on Tuesday.

In reply to a parliamentary question by PN MP Ivan Bartolo, Galdes said that 208 applicants have been on the waiting list for government housing for over a decade.

In additional replies, Galdes said that between January and October 17 this year, 280 applications for social housing could not be processed. 

Of these, 129 were considered invalid because of the applicant’s income, while 141 applications were incomplete and 10 did not conform to the conditions of the scheme. 

Additionally, the minister said that a total of 4,272 people are receiving financial assistance from the government to pay their rent. 

Some 3,360 people are receiving a rent subsidy, he said, while another 912 are getting aid based on laws that were introduced to amend rental agreements made before 1995. 

In 2021, Galdes said that the number of people waiting to be allocated social housing was expected to drop by 60% from 2017 numbers. 

Six years ago, 3,288 people were hoping for a state-funded home, however, Galdes said the number was expected to drop to 1,321 by the end of 2021 thanks to the completion of planned social housing projects. 

In 2021, the government said that 279 families were expected to move into newly built housing sites, while another 100 units were expected to become available through agreements with private homeowners.

The minister had announced that the government expected the waiting list for social housing to be slimmed down to 800 people by the end of 2022. 

In 2018 it was reported that 29 applicants for social housing had been waiting to be allocated a dwelling for 25 years.