Homelessness Debate

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Department: Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities

Lord Bird

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Refugees: Notice Period for Home Office Accommodation

Homelessness

Lord Bird Excerpts

Road Safety Strategy
Monday 18th December 2023

(4 months, 3 weeks ago)

Lords Chamber
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Lord Naseby Portrait Lord Naseby (Con)
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Does my noble friend—

Lord Bird Portrait Lord Bird (CB)
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Are the Government aware—

Earl of Courtown Portrait The Earl of Courtown (Con)
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My Lords, there is plenty of time. Can we have the noble Lord, Lord Bird, and then my noble friend Lord Naseby?

Lord Bird Portrait Lord Bird (CB)
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Are the Government aware that for every person who falls homeless—they are not all out on the streets—the cost of running that homeless family or individual is two or three times higher than if you keep them in their homes? Has the Treasury done any serious work looking at how to keep the costs of homelessness down by keeping people in their homes?

Baroness Penn Portrait Baroness Penn (Con)
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The noble Lord is absolutely right. That is why we passed the Homelessness Reduction Act and why more than half the support we have put directly into tackling homelessness is around prevention. That is funding to local authorities to work with landlords to prevent evictions, for example, before people find themselves in the position of needing to seek out temporary accommodation.

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