Tenants group casts doubt on government homeless statistics

AHOUSING group has called for action to be taken to help those facing homelessness after it slammed the Scottish Government for a “lack of knowledge” on rough sleepers.

The Scottish Tenants Organisation disputed results from a Freedom of Information request which claimed there were just 26 rough sleepers throughout Scotland in January this year, which was then said to have reduced to only 11 by mid-March.

The figures were branded

“ridiculously low” with the campaign group claiming the real numbers would be much higher.

Chairman Sean Clerkin said: “The Scottish Government has stated that there are only 11 people rough sleeping on the streets of Scotland as of March 25, 2021, when soup kitchens in Glasgow for the homeless regularly show between 60 and 200 people queuing for food.

“It is true some will not be sleeping rough but there are more than 11 people sleeping rough in the whole of Scotland.

“It does not know how many rough sleepers in Scotland were moved into long-term accommodation during the pandemic – again failing to collate this information from local authorities – which all seriously suggests that those sleeping rough are a low priority.”

The group has called for action to better support those in need.

However, a spokeswoman for the Scottish Government insisted it was working tirelessly to help homeless people.

She said: “As said by the Housing Minister, since the start of lockdown our priority has been to keep people safe from Covid-19 – and housing people without a settled home in temporary accommodation was a public health imperative to keep people safe.

“Temporary accommodation can offer an important safety net, but it should be a shortterm measure – we do not want to see anyone in temporary accommodation for longer than is absolutely necessary.

“This is the first set of official homelessness statistics for which coronavirus restrictions were in place for the full reporting period, and the trends can largely be explained by the Scottish Government’s range of actions to keep people safe in the pandemic, such as the introduction of stay-at-home guidance and our extension of eviction notice periods.”