Oral Answers to Questions

Christian Matheson Excerpts

Monday 23rd July 2018 Commons Chamber

[Rishi Sunak]

My hon. Friend is right about that and right to highlight the work of his local authority, which is a pioneer in collaborating more closely with the local NHS. That is showing tremendous results on the ground in reducing delayed transfers of care, which are stopping people from getting into the NHS in the first place. I hope that others can learn from Gloucestershire’s example.

[Christian Matheson (City of Chester) (Lab)]

16. What assessment he has made of trends in homelessness since 2010.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government (Nigel Adams)]

This Government are serious about tackling homelessness, which is why we have allocated more than £1.2 billion to tackle homelessness to 2020. We have implemented the most ambitious legislative reform in decades: the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017. We have also committed to halving rough sleeping by 2022 and to ending it by 2027, and we will shortly be publishing a strategy that sets out our plans to do that.

[Christian Matheson]

Homelessness has doubled nationally since 2010, but the increase is greater in the north-west. Why is that?

[Nigel Adams]

I know how seriously the hon. Gentleman takes this issue, and I am very encouraged by the work he is doing collaboratively with his local authority and organisations such as Chester Aid to the Homeless and Share. They will welcome, as I am sure he does, the £1.15 million that has been recently provided to help on this issue. Like me, he will be encouraged by the latest figures, which show a 9% fall nationally in statutory homelessness acceptances in the past year.