The Liberal Democrats have today renewed calls for “a more compassionate and holistic approach” to tackling homelessness following the publication of new government statistics today which revealed an 11.4% rise in households assessed as either homeless or threatened with homelessness.
Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran said: “The continuing rise in homeless households shows that this Conservative Government’s approach just isn’t working. It is simply unacceptable.
“We urgently need to take a more compassionate and holistic approach, across government, to tackling this crisis in our communities. Given the clear connection between a history of mental health problems and homelessness, any solution must involve better mental health provision.
“We also need to scrap the Dickensian Vagrancy Act, which continues to criminalise rough sleeping for those who fall through the safety net and end up on the streets.
“As Christmas approaches and the weather gets colder, I hope this serves as a wake-up call to the Tories. We can and must do better.”