‘Rise in children without a home shame for government’ - Healey

John Healey MP, Labour’s Shadow Housing Secretary, responding to the latest quarterly statistics on homelessness, said:

“The shocking rise in homelessness since 2010 should shame Conservative Ministers.

“Homelessness fell at an unprecedented rate under Labour, but after eight years of failure on housing under the Tories, 123,000 children are now without a home.

“This is a direct result of Conservative decisions: a steep drop in investment for affordable homes, cuts to housing benefit, reduced funding for homelessness services, and a refusal to help private renters.

“The next Labour government will end rough sleeping within a Parliament and tackle the root causes of rising homelessness with more affordable homes and stronger rights for renters.”

ENDS

Notes to editors

The latest government statistics show over 123,000 children are homeless in temporary accommodation, up two-thirds since the same point in 2010: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/719477/Temporary_accommodation.xlsx

This is equivalent to over 470 full primary schools: http://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN02625/SN02625.pdf.