The head of the British government has set out a commitment to tackle one of the most visible forms of poverty in the country. According to the reporting, Prime Minister Andy Burnham has pledged to end rough sleeping in the UK. He framed it as one of the first things he would act on, saying he would soon go through the door behind him and issue his first instruction to end rough sleeping in the country.
The pledge was accompanied by a specific sum of money aimed at those most at risk on the streets. According to the reporting, the promise comes with an additional 340 million pounds targeted at the most vulnerable rough sleepers to help them get housing and support. The extra funding was presented as the practical backing for the commitment the Prime Minister had made.
The scale of the problem in the capital underlined why the issue has drawn attention. According to the reporting, there were nearly 13,000 rough sleepers in London last year, a figure 60% higher than a decade ago. The rise over ten years showed how the number of people sleeping rough in the city had grown rather than fallen.
Public opinion on the pledge was mixed, combining support for the aim with doubt about whether it can be met. According to the reporting, more than half of people surveyed for an exclusive Sky poll thought Mr Burnham was right to make his pledge, while two thirds think he will fail to achieve it. The split pointed to broad agreement with the goal alongside scepticism about delivery.
The reporting placed the new commitment against a long record of previous attempts. According to the reporting, in the Blair and Brown era a rough sleeping unit dramatically reduced numbers on the streets by focusing on the root causes, but after the 2008 financial crisis numbers steadily rose again. The pattern showed how earlier gains had not held over time.
More recent efforts were described as producing only temporary improvements. According to the reporting, the pandemic triggered a successful but temporary drive to get people off the streets, and despite a pledge from housing minister Michael Gove to end rough sleeping, the numbers went back up. The account traced a cycle of promises followed by rising figures.
Voices in the report questioned whether the pledge could work without tackling deeper causes. According to the reporting, one contributor argued that homelessness is a symptom, pointing to drug addiction, prison, family break-up, relationship breakdown and losing a job, and said that unless all of those are solved the problem will not be ended. Others working with homeless people said they needed funding, time and support to help those on the streets.