It’s even worse S

VOTERS in Barnsley and Doncaster have given a decisive thumbs-up to a One Yorkshire devolution deal, rejecting government imposition of competing city regions.

In a reasonable – for local polls - turn-out of 20% they returned an 85% majority for a countywide deal.

Tory ministers have rejected this version of limited homerule, but they will have to think again if they have any respect for democracy.

Even the Archbishop of York, wise old Dr John Sentamu, thinks the politicians in Westminster must listen and change tack.

God’s will in God’s Own County, you might say. OMETIMES, on impulse, I tear up the column and start again just before deadline.

Usually, because an issue comes up that just has to addressed.

It was so last week, when homelessness shot up the agenda, as it always does at Christmas.

The contrast between Royal holiday luxury and £10 million flats in Harrogate with the plight of rough sleepers was too stark, too maddening, to ignore.

But it was worse, much worse than I thought.

New figures from the Commons Public Accounts Committee put the figure for people sleeping on the streets at 9,000 – more than twice the previous estimate.

And there are 78,000 homeless households, including 120,000 children living in temporary accommodation, often of a poor standard.

Homelessness in Britain is “a national scandal”, and the government’s record in tackling it is one of “abject failure” said MPs.

Other research, by the Yorkshire Building Society, put the number of young adults homeless across the country over Christmas at 16,000.

These are statistics, but they are about real people. Last week, I hadn’t seen the Examiner’s poignant story by Stephanie Finnegan about Huddersfield rough sleeper Silva Parden-Bell.

Ms Parden-Bell took her own life in Bradford Road, Fartown, at the tragically-young age of 35, in July last year.

Before doing so, she poured her heart out to Arriva bus driver Trev Whitehead in a scribbled note on a page torn from a book.

Trev had given Silva and her dog Skittles a free ride from Leeds because she had no money.

She apologised for “disruppting” him, and wrote “You may not know it but you have all helped me greatly,” signed with three kisses.

The poor woman had nothing to apologise for. It is the rest of society, which failed her in her hour of need, that should apologise.

In particular, the politicians should get down on their knees and beg forgiveness for failing Silva and so many thousands like her.

The government insists it is taking action, citing the Homelessness Reduction Act, passed into law earlier this year It places a duty on councils to prevent homelessness and help those who find themselves out on the streets.

But this was a private member’s bill, sponsored by Tory MP Bob Blackman. The government was shamed into supporting it.

It did nothing for Christmas victims. The Act doesn’t come into effect until next April, and ministers have earmarked a pitiful £61 million to fund the scheme – while slashing local authority spending across the board by infinitely more.

Housing charity Shelter welcomes the measure, but warns that without a strategic housing policy, it won’t work.

At present, half of all English councils say it’s “very difficult” to find suitable private sector accommodation because of sky-high rents and frozen housing benefits.

That won’t change, nor will the scandal of rough sleepers, until the government builds adequate social housing for rent – and, if Labour gets in, brings back rent controls.

Meanwhile, the so-called Communities Secretary Sajid Javid should have a framed copy of Silva Parden-Bell’s last message on his office wall.

To remind him there are real people in these statistics.