National Plan to End Homelessness

Bob Blackman Excerpts

Thursday 11th December 2025 Commons Chamber

[Alison McGovern]

Housing associations will have heard the comments that my hon. Friend has made. I am sure that they all aspire to treat their residents with the utmost respect and care, but they will have heard what he has said and will want to ensure that they fulfil that ambition.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

I remind the House that under the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017, which was implemented in 2018, 1.7 million people in this country have been prevented from becoming homeless in the first place. There is also a duty to refer on the health service, the Prison Service, the armed forces and every statutory body. If they come across people who are threatened with being homeless, they must refer them on.

The Minister talks about a duty to co-operate and assist, but we must ensure that if she needs to revisit that duty to refer and put the onus on co-operation between the two parties, that is fine. Equally, she could immediately implement the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023 that I piloted through this place so that the supported housing provided is taken away from rogue landlords who exploit vulnerable people. I look forward to that being implemented.

In the limited time that I have had to read the document, there does not seem to be a mention of the roll-out of Housing First. We know that works. It puts a roof over people’s heads and then we can build the network of support they need to get them back on their feet. Finally, if she needs legislative change, my Homelessness Prevention Bill received an unopposed Second Reading in this place but awaits Government approval, a Committee stage and potential funding. If she needs a legislative process, it is there, ready to go.

[Alison McGovern]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his work over so many years on this issue. He mentions a number of legislative vehicles, some of which have already made a change and some of which could. I will work with him to do what we need.

On the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act, he will have noticed in the Budget that the Chief Secretary to the Treasury is leading some work on value for money in that sector. I will write to him with details on that. On the duty to collaborate, I am sorry to say that we are all aware, as constituency MPs, of terrible cases where homelessness could clearly have been prevented at a number of turns and was not. Two things are necessary: we need to introduce a duty to collaborate and work across the House to do that, but we also need transparency about results. We know how many people present themselves to councils with a risk of homelessness. This strategy sets out an objective to increase the number of cases when homelessness is prevented. Let us have transparency, let us have clarity about where it is happening and not, and let us make sure that councils have the tools in the box to do the job.