Homelessness set to rise in the UK ahead of the second wave

A LAST-minute attempt to help stop 55,000 desperate renters from being evicted has been launched in the House of Lords. Homelessness set to rise in the UK ahead of the second wave.

Lib Dem peer Baroness Olly Grender will on Wednesday use a motion to hopefully block the evictions from going ahead.

As it currently stands, anyone served with an eviction notice since the end of August has been given a six-month notice period as part of a bid to stop a wave of homelessness caused by job losses in the wake of COVID-19.

The problem is those who were served a notice from March to August have not been given that same protection, leaving an estimated 55,000 people at risk of being slung out of their homes and onto the streets.

But, Homelessness is set to rise in the UK ahead of the second wave if nothing is done to help those vulnerable.

Housing campaigners fear that it will mean a rise in homelessness and more pressure on councils just as the UK braces for a second wave of the COVID-19 crisis.

According to a briefing by housing group Generation Rent, 200 judges have been given the training to deal with housing cases as the courts prepare to deal with the backlog.

Baroness Grender’s ‘Prayer to Annul’ could force a vote on the government’s pandemic regulations – with Lords from across the house understood to be unhappy about the potential evictions.

Labour’s justice spokesperson Lord Ponsonby of Shulbredeh has also put down a ‘Regret Motion’ against the changes.

As the pandemic hit, Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick said that no one who had lost income due to the pandemic would lose their home.

Baroness Grender told UK press, “This Government made a promise that no renter who has lost income due to COVID would lose their home, yet from Monday tens of thousands are facing that very real threat.

“Rather than scrapping no-fault evictions as promised in the election, Tory Ministers are enabling evictions of an estimated 55,000 private renters.  People who have been furloughed, made redundant, have children going to a local school are all under threat.

“If this goes ahead countless families will find themselves without a home, on this Government’s watch, in the midst of a pandemic. The loss of a private tenancy is the main factor behind someone becoming homeless, which is why the Liberal Democrats are determined to put a stop this legislation.”

A spokesperson for the government said: “We’ve taken unprecedented action to support renters by banning evictions for six months, preventing people getting into financial hardship and helping businesses to pay salaries.

“To help keep people in their homes over the winter months, we’ve changed the law to increase notice periods to six months and introduced a ‘winter truce’ on the enforcement of evictions for the first time.

“In addition, we have put in place a welfare safety net of nearly £9.3bn and increased Local Housing Allowance rates to cover the lowest 30% of market rents.”

We hope you enjoyed this article “Homelessness set to rise in the UK ahead of the second wave”.

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Written by

Charlie Loran

Manchester born mummy with a two year old diva (2020), living on the Costa del Sol for just short of a decade.
Former chef and restaurateur, holistic health fanatic and lover of long words.

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