The number of homeless in the UK has climbed sharply over the past six years, with the government facing criticism over its "light touch" approach to the problem, according to a National Audit Office (NAO) report.
The report says a snapshot overnight count of people sleeping rough found 4,134 people, an increase of 143% since the Conservatives took power.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The report points to government cutbacks to the Local Housing Allowance (LHA), designed to help tenants meet the cost of private rents, as a factor behind the rise.
“LHA support has fallen behind rent levels in many areas, forcing tenants to cover an average rent shortfall of £50 a week in London and £26 a week elsewhere,” The Guardian says.
“Welfare reforms announced by the government in 2015 included a four-year freeze to housing benefit - which was implemented in April 2016,” the BBC says.
Auditor General Sir Amyas Morse said the Department for Work and Pensions had not properly considered the potential impact of the benefit changes.
“It is difficult to understand why the department persisted with its light touch approach in the face of such a visibly growing problem,” Morse said.
-
Australia’s teen social media ban takes effectSpeed Read Kids under age 16 are now barred from platforms including YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and Reddit
-
Judge orders release of Ghislaine Maxwell recordsSpeed Read The grand jury records from the 2019 prosecution of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein will be made public
-
Miami elects first Democratic mayor in 28 yearsSpeed Read Eileen Higgins, Miami’s first woman mayor, focused on affordability and Trump’s immigration crackdown in her campaign
-
‘It’s Nigel Farage setting the agenda’Instant Opinion Your digest of analysis from the British and international press
-
Home Office worker accused of spiking mistress’s drink with abortion drugSpeed Read Darren Burke had failed to convince his girlfriend to terminate pregnancy
-
‘We are in danger of inflicting a humanitarian calamity’Instant Opinion Your digest of analysis from the British and international press
-
In hock to Moscow: exploring Germany’s woeful energy policySpeed Read Don’t expect Berlin to wean itself off Russian gas any time soon
-
Were Covid restrictions dropped too soon?Speed Read ‘Living with Covid’ is already proving problematic – just look at the travel chaos this week
-
Inclusive Britain: a new strategy for tackling racism in the UKSpeed Read Government has revealed action plan setting out 74 steps that ministers will take
-
Sandy Hook families vs. Remington: a small victory over the gunmakersSpeed Read Last week the families settled a lawsuit for $73m against the manufacturer
-
Farmers vs. walkers: the battle over ‘Britain’s green and pleasant land’Speed Read Updated Countryside Code tells farmers: ‘be nice, say hello, share the space’
