§ Mr. Greenwayasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) what steps he is taking to alleviate the problems of the totally homeless during extremely cold weather; and if he will make a statement;
(2) if he will take steps to secure the provision of shelter for the totally homeless during extremely cold weather; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. John PattenAccommodation for the homeless is mainly a matter for local authorities which have specific duties under the Housing (Homeless Persons) Act 1977.
The Secretary of State has a statutory duty under the Supplementary Benefits Act 1976, as amended, to provide and maintain resettlement units where homeless single people without a settled way of life are provided with temporary board and lodging with a view to influencing them to lead a more settled life.
There are vacant beds in virtually all of the 23 resettlement units at present.