Homeless to have tents banned

[dubsie]

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/nov/04/suella-braverman-says-rough-sleeping-is-lifestyle-choice

No one wants to see people sleeping in tents in cities but what are homeless people meant to do. Given the choice I think I'd choose a tent over a shop door way or a park bench...and I don't think many people choose being homeless ....not a lifestyle choice for most people.

I think this is more the fact that people like this minister can't stand the sight of homeless people, it reminds them that their decisions have consequences

What exactly does she want them to do? Die?

Suella is right in as much as the tents should not be outside shops in high streets, it they want to pitch tents, it needs to be somewhere unused ( hard in a city or town) but it’s just not acceptable for them to be outside eg, superdry they also leave their waste and dirty bedding and trollers around the street, I’ve seen it.

and yes the homeless need to be put in to some kind of basic shared accommodation even if it is tents in a hall somewhere.

Well if you don’t like tents, you wouldn’t like them blocking your access to Superdry with a wardrobe or washing machine for their bedding either. 🙄

It must be horrible for you to have to look at dirty bedding, what a travesty.

I doubt that many people “chose” to be homeless. It’s often linked to mental health, trauma and addiction.
i see the government don’t have an actual plan to fund for any of that, though, or address the housing crisis, but just to take away the small bit of comfort and shelter they might have.
vile.

The reason why they pitch tents up on the street is because they don't have anywhere to go and in some ways it's good that we can see it. It shines a light on this tragedy and makes people think.

Shelters are dangerous places and so are shared accommodation, a lot of homeless people avoid these places for very good reason.

I think this government is truly lost the plot and is now full of greedy nasty people who should not be members of parliament

The Tories don’t want to face reality

Yes it does not need to be there where people are walking and trading. Why do you want it there?

It is so depressing to see anyone trying to make political capital by targeting homeless people who are so vulnerable. If she really gave a shit about others, she would be thinking about how the government could end homelessness rather than trying to criminalise and target a group who are marginalised and at risk. Just when you think she can't be more unpleasant, she does something so repulsive that it is hard to actually believe she isn't crazy.

It isn’t true they don’t have somewhere to go- there is a statutory duty for housing to be provided. They are usually on the streets for other reasons- not because no alternative housing is available. Maybe banning tents will force them to engage with statutory services.

Honestly, every time I.read about something Braverman has said, it reinforces my view that she is actively trying to live up to her tabloid nickname of Cruella.

She's odds on favourite for next Tory leader.

Whilst local authorities have a statutory duty to house someone, this is not possible in every case.
And where there is accommodation it can be horrific - drug users, mentally ill who should really be somewhere else.
My ex was offered a room with shared bathroom and no kitchen. He's a big guy and he felt unsafe there. He said no and ended up living on the streets for several months.
There are also others who are offered accommodation but only if they are drug/alcohol free and for them it is not within their ability at that time. So where do they go?

I think it's barbaric.

Where are homeless people meant to go? There are not enough shelters. There is not enough temporary accommodation. Government has cut funding to local authorities, and LA are now having to spend huge amounts on b&b's for homeless families (and can't prioritise homeless singles), and this is impacting on LA's having precarious financial situations.

Winter is coming and now, to boot, tents are not allowed?!!

I think that's exactly what she wants them to do.

They might need to move out of highly populated areas if no suitable temporary accommodation. Reality is soft touch approaches aren’t working and hard decisions have to be made.

We definitely don't want tent cities along the lines of Skid row in the US, that is not good for anyone.
I don't know what the answer is but I think it starts with ploughing a lot of money into schools, children's services, social services and CAMHs.

Lifestyle choice my arse.

Is the reason that the Scandinavian approaches to homelessness, won’t work in the UK? I don’t know much about this area to be honest but there doesn’t seem to me to be much of a soft touch here. If anything there seems to be a lack of empathy. Also, I thought to access most services that help someone get medium to long term accommodation you need to have an address.

She's beyond repugnant. Her lack of morality epitomises the Tories perfectly.

It's almost like they have cognitive dissonance, 13 years of their policy has led to the levels of homelessness she's so disgusted by.

" Lifestyle choice." She can fuck off. And then fuck off some more.

There's no "soft touch" that isn't working. There's been a complete lack of joined up strategy to reduce homelessness for the entire time the conservatives have been in government. The rise and rise of homelessness is down to their policies and their governing over the last decade plus. But ok, blame some of the most vulnerable powerless and poor in our society for their situation. It's a "lifestyle choice" for sure.

Lifestyle choice my arse. Homeless shelters full of drugs, violence and theft. Noisy and filthy dirty. Can see why people should “prefer” a tent rather than be made to stay in that sort of hell. Fucking Tory scum.

Move out of highly populated areas? Yeah sure our rural areas are overflowing with spare housing. And soft touch approaches aren’t working? What soft touch approaches? Homeslessness isn’t a crime ffs.

Please can you explain what the soft touch approaches you are referring to are? And also explain how removing the ability of homeless people to sleep in tents wlll reduce homeless.

I was in London recently and saw a lot of tents - what I want is a government who will deal with the crisis but I don’t want to have to see tented slums in major UK cities. So what is the answer?

I think it’s worth considering in good faith why Suella Braverman thinks this is a good idea. Honestly I think it’s unlikely that she’s doing it just to be ‘evil’. I imagine she thinks:

1. Tent cities drag towns down and make them unpleasant and dangerous for everyone.
2. Homeless people should always be offered accommodation, so those that are in tents are ‘choosing’ to be there.

Clearly homeless hostels are unsafe and horrendous, but living on the street is also dangerous. There are many complex reasons why people become homeless and it is often extremely difficult to get back to a normal way of life. No doubt austerity has had a major impact on all this. But there’s no point making SB into some pantomime villain, she just has a particular political outlook (that many people share). I’m a bit fed up with all the ‘why are people so cruel?’ posters who seem wilfully ignorant about how difficult it is to balance everyone’s contributions/needs/rights/freedoms.