Suella Braverman faces backlash after saying rough sleeping is ‘lifestyle choice’

Published

1 year ago

November 5, 2023

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The home secretary wants to restrict the use of tents by homeless people in UK towns and cities, arguing it is “a lifestyle choice”.

Suella Braverman said many of those who sleep in tents are “from abroad” and insisted there is no need given the alternatives and support available to rough sleepers.

The UK will follow the likes of San Francisco and Los Angeles in the US, where “weak policies have led to an explosion of crime, drug taking, and squalor”, if action is not taken, she added.

Ms Braverman’s proposal has been branded “cruel and ignorant”, with critics accusing her of seeking “to dehumanise people and create a scapegoat in society”.

Writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, Ms Braverman said: “The British people are compassionate. We will always support those who are genuinely homeless. But we cannot allow our streets to be taken over by rows of tents occupied by people, many of them from abroad, living on the streets as a lifestyle choice.

“Nobody in Britain should be living in a tent on our streets. There are options for people who don’t want to be sleeping rough, and the government is working with local authorities to strengthen wraparound support including treatment for those with drug and alcohol addiction.

“What I want to stop, and what the law-abiding majority wants us to stop, is those who cause nuisance and distress to other people by pitching tents in public spaces, aggressively begging, stealing, taking drugs, littering, and blighting our communities.”

The home secretary’s crackdown would reportedly target “nuisance” tents, such as those blocking shop doorways, and involve charities that hand out camping equipment being fined.

Responding, Labour MP Jess Phillips said: “My brother was a rough sleeper, unlike Suella Braverman he has dedicated his life in gratitude to the fact he still has it to the service and help of others.

“He’d be a better home secretary than her but then again a cardboard box would be a better home secretary than her.”

Liberal Democrat MP Alistair Carmichael said: “This is grim politics from a desperate Conservative government which knows its day are numbered.

“It is a new low for Braverman to criminalise homeless charities for simply trying to keep vulnerable people warm and dry in winter.

“The British public raise millions of pounds for homeless people at this time of year, and the government’s response is to criminalise those charities trying to help.

“This policy will do nothing to stop rough sleeping and will leave vulnerable people to face the harsh weather conditions without any shelter whatsoever.”

Mrs Braverman’s plans to tackle homeless tents also came under fire from protesters gathered outside the Home Office on Saturday, amid wider concerns about her hard-line approach to refugees.

James Cox, of the Public and Commercial Services Union, said: “There’s a political aim to dehumanise people and create a scapegoat in society.

“These people are the most vulnerable, our aim should be to make sure they can integrate into society.”

The government last year said it would repeal the 1824 Vagrancy Act, which made begging and rough sleeping illegal, and promised £2bn over three years to help get people off the streets.

But a recent report found rough sleeping was up 26% on last year.

The study said many of the problems stem from a severe shortage of affordable housing and a lack of appropriate support services.

This, combined with the cost of living crisis, is pushing more people into homelessness.

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SNP MP Alison Thewliss said: “This latest proposal from the home secretary is nothing short of cruel and ignorant.

“Instead of focussing on the Westminster-made cost of living crisis, the home secretary is attempting to distract people from the incompetence her department has shown in tackling homelessness.

“Homelessness is not a lifestyle choice, and never has been.”

The government’s rough sleeping snapshot for autumn 2022 said just over 3,000 people were estimated to be sleeping rough in England.

Prince William is among those campaigning on the issue and has launched a project called Homewards, which aims to bring together organisations and people to find local solutions.

Politics

Wolf Capital co-founder pleads guilty to $9.4M Ponzi, promised 547% returns

Published

12 hours ago

January 11, 2025

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Wolf Capital co-founder pleads guilty to .4M Ponzi, promised 547% returns

According to the US Department of Justice, Wolf Capital’s co-founder has pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy for luring 2,800 crypto investors into a Ponzi scheme.

Politics

Rachel Reeves lands in China amid pressure to cancel trip over market turmoil

Published

13 hours ago

January 11, 2025

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Rachel Reeves lands in China amid pressure to cancel trip over market turmoil

Making Britain better off will be “at the forefront of the chancellor’s mind” during her visit to China, the Treasury has said amid controversy over the trip.

Rachel Reeves flew out on Friday after ignoring calls from opposition parties to cancel the long-planned venture because of market turmoil at home.

The past week has seen a drop in the pound and an increase in government borrowing costs, which has fuelled speculation of more spending cuts or tax rises.

The Tories have accused the chancellor of having “fled to China” rather than explain how she will fix the UK’s flatlining economy, while the Liberal Democrats say she should stay in Britain and announce a “plan B” to address market volatility.

However, Ms Reeves has rejected calls to cancel the visit, writing in The Times on Friday night that choosing not to engage with China is “no choice at all”.

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The chancellor will be accompanied by Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey and other senior executives.

She will meet with her counterpart, Vice Premier He Lifeng, in Beijing on Saturday to discuss financial services, trade and investment.

She will also “raise difficult issues”, including Chinese firms supporting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and concerns over constraints on rights and freedoms in Hong Kong, the Treasury said.

But it did not mention whether Ms Reeves would raise the treatment of the Uyghur community, which Downing Street said Foreign Secretary David Lammy would do during his visit last year.

On Friday, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy defended the trip, telling Sky News that the climbing cost of government borrowing was a “global trend” that had affected many countries, “most notably the United States”.

“We are still on track to be the fastest growing economy, according to the OECD [Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development] in Europe,” she told Anna Jones on Sky News Breakfast.

“China is the second-largest economy, and what China does has the biggest impact on people from Stockton to Sunderland, right across the UK, and it’s absolutely essential that we have a relationship with them.”

Read more – Ed Conway analysis: The chancellor’s gamble with China

However, former prime minister Boris Johnson said Ms Reeves had “been rumbled” and said she should “make her way to HR and collect her P45 – or stay in China”.

While in the country’s capital, Ms Reeves will also visit British bike brand Brompton’s flagship store, which relies heavily on exports to China, before heading to Shanghai for talks with representatives across British and Chinese businesses.

It is the first UK-China Economic and Financial Dialogue (EFD) since 2019, building on the Labour government’s plan for a “pragmatic” policy with the world’s second-largest economy.

Sir Keir Starmer was the first British prime minister to meet with China’s President Xi Jinping in six years at the G20 summit in Brazil last autumn.

Relations between the UK and China have become strained over the last decade as the Conservative government spoke out against human rights abuses and concerns grew over national security risks.

Navigating this has proved tricky given China is the UK’s fourth largest single trading partner, with a trade relationship worth almost £113bn and exports to China supporting over 455,000 jobs in the UK in 2020, according to the government.

During the Tories’ 14 years in office, the approach varied dramatically from the “golden era” under David Cameron to hawkish aggression under Liz Truss, while Rishi Sunak vowed to be “robust” but resisted pressure from his own party to brand China a threat.

The Treasury said a stable relationship with China would support economic growth and that “making working people across Britain secure and better off is at the forefront of the chancellor’s mind”.

Ahead of her visit, Ms Reeves said: “By finding common ground on trade and investment, while being candid about our differences and upholding national security as the first duty of this government, we can build a long-term economic relationship with China that works in the national interest.”