Airbnb asked to give abuse victims free place to stay
THERE has been a gradual increase in domestic abuse-related offences being reported to police in the last few years.
Recent statistics by the Office for National Statistics found that domestic abuse cases accounted for 20 per cent of all offences reported to police forces across the country between April and June this year.
Earlier this year, Airbnb Ireland ran an initiative where domestic violence survivors were able to find free temporary accommodation when specialist refuge was not available.
Councillor Richard Kilpatrick, for Didsbury West, has now written to Airbnb urging for the ‘wellthought-out and meaningful’ initiative to be extended across the UK.
Coun Kilpatrick said he felt the recentlyintroduced tiered restrictions would pose a ‘horrifying reality’ for victims of domestic abuse.
“I am therefore writing to strongly urge Airbnb UK to follow Airbnb Ireland’s example and make the same commitment to people suffering from or at risk of domestic abuse in the UK,” Coun Kilpatrick said in the letter. “I appreciate that the pandemic has been a challenge for many businesses. However, Airbnb has grown exponentially in recent years and handled nearly 200 million bookings last year alone.
“The reality is that we must do all we can to make sure that anyone at risk of domestic abuse is guaranteed a safe and consistent place to stay and Airbnb can offer that.”
In a statement, Coun Kilpatrick said the letter was important in demonstrating the support that domestic violence victims require – particularly over the festive period when many services may not be running as normal. “The reality is that we must do all we can to make sure that anyone at risk of domestic abuse is guaranteed a safe and consistent place to stay and Airbnb can offer that,” he said. “That’s why I’ve written to Airbnb here in the UK to ask them to urgently follow their Irish counterpart’s brilliant initiative and offer up any free accommodation to anyone at risk of domestic abuse. “I strongly urge Airbnb to take action and play its part in the Coronavirus crisis.”
In response to the letter, Airbnb said it has pledged to support numerous communities across the world this year and was continuing to ‘monitor’ the impact of the Irish initiative.
We must do all we can to make sure anyone at risk of domestic abuse is guaranteed a safe place to stay
Coun Kilpatrick