Skip to main content

Homelessness: Migrants

Volume 457: debated on Monday 5 March 2007

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether figures on homelessness provided by local authorities to her Department take into account the number of migrants not entitled to benefits residing in their areas. (120965)

Information about English local housing authorities’ activity under the homelessness legislation is collected by this Department. These data do not include information about entitlement to social security benefits, for which the Department for Work and Pensions has policy responsibility.

Rough sleeping counts and data on the number of applications for homelessness assistance (including those by ineligible households) include migrants who are not entitled to benefits. Figures on the number of households who are accepted by local authorities as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need, and therefore owed a main homelessness duty will reflect the fact that migrants who are not entitled to benefits may also not be entitled to homelessness assistance.