The leader of Windsor council has faced a powerful online backlash after calling for a clampdown on the royal borough’s homeless population before the royal wedding.
Conservative councillor Simon Dudley was branded ‘abhorrent’ and out of touch for the remarks, which he tweeted from a Christmas skiing holiday in the US.
In a letter sent to Police and Crime Commissioner Anthony Stansfeld on Tuesday, Dudley set out the supposedly ample resources currently available to Windsor’s rough sleepers, whom he said “present a beautiful town in a sadly unfavourable light”.
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With all eyes on Windsor in May for the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Dudley argued that stricter enforcement of anti-vagrancy and anti-begging legislation was necessary in light of “the special context and security profile of the town”.
The comments were picked up by several news outlets and quickly generated a backlash as social media users criticised Dudley’s attitude as an attempt to sweep the pressing issue of homelessness under the carpet to create a fairytale backdrop for the royal wedding:
Leading barrister and founder of the Good Law Project Jo Maugham QC drew on the Bible to highlight the uncharitable attitude of the comments:
While others called for protests on the day of the wedding:
“Stigmatising or punishing [rough sleepers] is totally counterproductive,” Greg Beales of housing charity Shelter told The Guardian. “They desperately need our help, support and advice to move off the streets into safety and, eventually, into a home.”
However, some Windsor residents defended Dudley’s comments, saying they were a realistic reflection of a growing problem in the royal borough: