§ Mr. Corbynasked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) why guidelines arc issued to housing authorities on the acceptance of homeless families who were from overseas;
(2) what representations he has received concerning Bangladeshi families in bed and breakfast accommodation in London;
(3) what advice his Department has issued to the London borough of Tower Hamlets concerning the application of the intentionally homeless rule under the Homeless Persons Act.
§ Mr. TraceyGuidance to all local authorities on the exercise of their functions under part III of the Housing Act 1985 is contained in the Department's code of guidance (a copy of which is in the Library). Paragraphs 2.13–2.20 of that code are concerned with intentional homelessness, and paragraph A.2.2 is relevant to the treatment of people from overseas. Section 71(1) of the 1985 Act requires local authorities to have regard to the guidance in the code. Recent representations about the housing of Bangladeshi families in bed and breakfast accommodation have been from the London boroughs of Tower Hamlets and Westminster.