Keir Starmer's Benefit Cuts Cast Doubt on His Pledge to End Homelessness
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Campaigners have warned that Keir Starmer's Government's planned benefits cuts are undermining its plans to end homelessness, as new figures show the number of households in temporary accommodation continues to rise.
Ministers have committed to increase funding for homeless services by £233 million next year, which will take spending to almost £1 billion, which they argue will put the UK on the path to ending homelessness.
However, the planned increases come as the Government also slashes spending on benefits, leading to fears that any progress could be reversed.
Speaking at the London Housing Summit on Wednesday, Labour MP for Vauxhall and Camberwell Green, who chairs Parliament's housing committee, said that the most "shocking thing" about the housing crisis is that an estimated 160,000 children, 90,000 of which are in London "woke up in temporary accommodation".
UPDATE
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Russell Scott
"Some of those children will not sleep in the same bed tonight. Some of them will be asked to move to another B and B hostel. That 90,000 equates to one child in every single classroom here in London. And when I was elected as the Chair of the Housing Communities and Local Government select committee, I was determined to make sure we put the stories of those children and the impact on their day-to-day lives front and center of the work we are doing as a select committee".
Her speech followed the release of statutory homelessness statistics for October to December 2024, which revealed that the number of households in temporary accommodation is at record levels and continues to rise.
127,890 households were in temporary accommodation on 31 December 2024, up 1.5% from the previous quarter and up 13.6% from the same time last year.
Eshalomi pledged to work to end the crisis, saying "let it be that every single home that we are bringing forward together with the Government includes generally affordable homes and social homes, so that we get those children out of temporary accommodation into a home of their own".
Some campaigners in the housing sector worry that the Government's housebuilding program will be insufficient to tackle the scale of the crisis.
EXCLUSIVE
'Peter Mandelson's Fixing of Keir Starmer's Visit to Spytech Firm Palantir Raises Serious Questions'
Palantir wa
To support its work, subscribe to the monthly Byline Times print edition, packed with exclusive investigations, news, and analysis.
Help us build the better media Britain deserves
Campaigners have warned that Keir Starmer's Government's planned benefits cuts are undermining its plans to end homelessness, as new figures show the number of households in temporary accommodation continues to rise.
Ministers have committed to increase funding for homeless services by £233 million next year, which will take spending to almost £1 billion, which they argue will put the UK on the path to ending homelessness.
However, the planned increases come as the Government also slashes spending on benefits, leading to fears that any progress could be reversed.
Speaking at the London Housing Summit on Wednesday, Labour MP for Vauxhall and Camberwell Green, who chairs Parliament's housing committee, said that the most "shocking thing" about the housing crisis is that an estimated 160,000 children, 90,000 of which are in London "woke up in temporary accommodation".
UPDATE
Company That Supplied Hundreds of Millions of Pounds of Unusable COVID Tests Saw Profits Skyrocket to £178 Million After Lobbying Conservative Peer for Contract
Primer Design's turnover jumped by 4,800% after supplying tests that were later deemed "unfit for public use"
Russell Scott
"Some of those children will not sleep in the same bed tonight. Some of them will be asked to move to another B and B hostel. That 90,000 equates to one child in every single classroom here in London. And when I was elected as the Chair of the Housing Communities and Local Government select committee, I was determined to make sure we put the stories of those children and the impact on their day-to-day lives front and center of the work we are doing as a select committee".
Her speech followed the release of statutory homelessness statistics for October to December 2024, which revealed that the number of households in temporary accommodation is at record levels and continues to rise.
127,890 households were in temporary accommodation on 31 December 2024, up 1.5% from the previous quarter and up 13.6% from the same time last year.
Eshalomi pledged to work to end the crisis, saying "let it be that every single home that we are bringing forward together with the Government includes generally affordable homes and social homes, so that we get those children out of temporary accommodation into a home of their own".
Some campaigners in the housing sector worry that the Government's housebuilding program will be insufficient to tackle the scale of the crisis.
EXCLUSIVE
'Peter Mandelson's Fixing of Keir Starmer's Visit to Spytech Firm Palantir Raises Serious Questions'
Palantir wa
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