Hundreds will die if government relaxes covid anti-homelessness rules

Even without a second wave, 184 people would die, according to UCL modellers.

A study has warned that, if the government relaxes its pandemic measures against homelessness then hundreds of people will die.

The peer-reviewed UCL study found that, even without a second wave, a return to the pre-pandemic status quo would lead to 12,000 infections and 184 deaths.

The study did not model what would happen if there was a second wave and the homesless measures were relaxed.

When the lockdown was announced in March, the government gave local councils money to house rough sleepers in hotels.

As hotels have begun opening up to paying guests though, there have been fears that homeless people will be pushed back on to the streets.

In May, a parliamentary committee called on the government to announce new funding and to ban ‘no fault’ evictions.

On 17 September, the government announced around £100m in new funding to keep homeless people off the streets.

Joe Lo is a co-editor of Left Foot Forward

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