“We cannot allow our streets to be taken over by rows of tents occupied by people, many from abroad, who have chosen to sleep on the streets as a lifestyle. ” THE about X (ex-Twitter) of British Interior Minister Suella Braverman announced the color.
The British government on Sunday defended its plan to target homeless people sleeping in tents on the streets after provoking outrage by calling the phenomenon a “way of life”.
Housing crisis
The surge in prices for more than a year in the United Kingdom has led to an increase in poverty and the number of homeless people, especially as the country faces a serious housing crisis.
“It is the government’s responsibility to be able to say, when the people concerned might be in a safer place, that we should not allow tent cities to develop,” said Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden on the BBC. He confirmed that the Conservative government intended to legislate on the matter, as Interior Minister Suella Braverman had indicated the day before.
Fines to associations that provide tents
The latter assured that there were “possibilities for those who do not want to sleep in the street” and said they wanted to put an end to the “nuisance caused by those who pitch their tents in public spaces and beg aggressively, commit stealing, using drugs, littering.” According to Financial Times, The project notably provides for fines for associations helping the homeless if they provide tents.
Labor Mayor of London Sadiq Khan accused the government of “lacking compassion” with its plan. “Living on the streets is not a chosen way of life, it is a sign of the failure of the government,” protested the specialist association Shelter.