HL Deb 18 December 1990 vol 524 cc46-7WA
Lord Brougham and Vaux

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What plans they have for action to help homeless single people in London, in addition to that announced in the Secretary of State for Health's reply of 22nd June, (H.C. deb., col. 752).

Baroness Blatch

My honourable friend the Minister for Housing and Planning has announced today the go-ahead for a thousand new bedspaces in hostel and long-term accommodation under the single homelessness initiative to tackle rough sleeping in central London.

The new hostel spaces will be run by front-line voluntary groups. The Government are working on this high priority task in close co-operation with voluntary organisations. Nick Hardwick, Director of Centrepoint, Soho, will also be working closely with the Government on this project.

Together with the voluntary sector, the Government will be developing strategies to ensure particularly that people sleeping in concentrations such as those in London's Bullring and Victoria will make use of the hostels that are available to them.