New housing plans have been announced by Scottish ministers due to the current system being "inadequate".

Deputy first minister Nicola Sturgeon noted that the current system was not meeting the needs of the country and the number of new homes being created must be increased.

"The current rate of new house building - 25,000 new houses a year - is simply inadequate," she stated.

A range of grants, shared-equity schemes and mortgage-related products have also been announced to help first-time buyers enter the property market.

Commenting on the announcements, Kennedy Foster, Scotland policy consultant for Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), stated: "While we support efforts to assist first-time buyers into ownership, we have serious doubts whether a grant for first-time buyers will improve affordability."

He added that the CML looks forward to further dialogue on the best ways to bring about housing improvements.

The CML is the trade association for the mortgage lending industry, with members accounting for about 98 per cent of UK residential mortgage lending.