Emma Reynolds, Labour MP for Wolverhampton North East, has this week spoken in a debate in Parliament on homelessness in her role as Shadow Housing Minister.The UK is the seventh richest country in the world, yet homelessness and rough sleeping are increasing year on year under the current government and are both up by a third since 2010.

Speaking in the debate, Emma said, “Many families across the country will not be celebrating this Christmas; they will be in temporary accommodation, and many people will be sleeping on the streets. The effects of sleeping rough are enormously damaging to people’s physical and mental health. Many women and men end up living on the streets as a result of domestic abuse. Some have come out of care or prison.

“Although it is clear that the reasons for homelessness are complex and wide-ranging, under the current government, figures show that homelessness and rough sleeping have grown significantly worse. Cuts to local government budgets are hitting homelessness services disproportionately. We have seen a fall in the number of beds that homeless shelters can offer.

“It is particularly shocking and heart breaking that 80,000 children are without a permanent home this Christmas. The number of families with children living in Bed and Breakfasts is at a ten-year high. And those who are living there for more than 6 weeks has risen 8 fold since the election. The majority of these families are living together in one room. In over half of the cases investigated by the charity Shelter this year, children were sharing beds with their parents or siblings. Two thirds of families said that their children had no table to eat meals on, and often had to eat on the floor or on the bed. Children in temporary accommodation are more likely to fall behind at school, and lose vital opportunities at that formative age to develop and grow in a healthy living environment.

“A Labour government would tackle the cost of living crisis and the chronic shortage of housing. We have pledged to build 200,000 homes a year by 2020. We would scrap the cruel and unfair bedroom tax. We would freeze energy bills for millions of hard-pressed families. Crucially, we aim to reform and regulate the private rented sector to bring about more secure, longer-term tenancies, especially for families with children.”

December 2013