11 rough sleepers in all of Scotland? We fed 250 folk at soup kitchen on Friday
Charity says one city has more homeless than official total for nation
THE SCOTTISH Government has been ridiculed for claiming there were just 11 rough sleepers left in Scotland.
Officials gave the number in a response to a Freedom of Information request and claimed schemes to take people off the streets during lockdown had worked. But charity Homeless Project Scotland insists the figure is simply wrong. It says there are more than 11 in Glasgow alone, let alone the whole of Scotland. Colin McInnes, the charity’s chairman, said: “I think the number could be more than 100. “Last Friday night, we fed 240 people at our soup kitchen in Glasgow. What we see on the streets suggests there are more than 11 rough sleepers in Glasgow, never mind Scotland.
“My message to all politicians is, ‘Come out and see with your own eyes what is going on in our streets.’
“These people are broken, need support and to feel love and compassion. As far as I am concerned, there is no love, compassion and support being shown to homeless people.”
Thousands of homeless people have been accommodated in hotels and B&Bs during the coronavirus pandemic.
But charities, including Shelter and Crisis, warn this is only a short-term solution and an urgent plan is needed to find suitable housing for the homeless when hotels and B&Bs reopen to the public.
Shelter Scotland director Alison Watson said: “Our focus now is on ensuring we never go back to the days when an estimated 500 people slept rough on any given night in Scotland.
“Scotland’s homelessness legislation is some of the strongest in the world and means councils have a duty to accommodate those they have reason to believe are homeless. That’s the law.
“It was the law and it remains the law but it was broken frequently, especially in Glasgow and Edinburgh.”
The Scottish Government was approached for comment.