Sleeping Rough Is 'Lifestyle Choice', Council Report Claims

Sleeping rough is now a lifestyle choice for some, according to a Northampton Borough Council report. Leading councillors at the Conservative-led authority are expected tomorrow to approve a new strategy to reduce rough sleeping in the borough. A report to be considered by the authority’s cabinet said: “Northampton now has an established community of people who are choosing to sleep rough as a lifestyle and are resolutely refusing to leave the streets.” It notes people are doing this even though “sleeping rough is very dangerous” and detrimental to health. It also said a “significant proportion” of the rough sleepers are unemployed European migrants. Read more on the IBT website.

Migrants Remain In Hostels to Avoid Losing Housing Benefit

Welfare reforms are causing supported housing to be ‘clogged up’. Efforts to protect European Union migrants from benefit cuts are leading to hostel accommodation and supported housing becoming ‘clogged up’, homelessness experts have warned. Moving European people on from supported housing will in some circumstances result in their housing benefit being cut under welfare reforms that came into effect in April. Migrants from the European Economic Area who are not working are no longer eligible to claim any housing benefit. Migrants who were already claiming before 1 April were given ‘transitional protection’ from the changes until there is a break in their claim, such as a move out of a local authority area or a sanction. Read more on Inside Housing.

Biggest Buy-To-Let Landlords to Sell Entire Portfolio

Britain's biggest buy-to-let landlords, Fergus and Judith Wilson, are to withdraw from the property business, selling their entire portfolio of nearly 1,000 homes in the Ashford and Maidstone area in a deal likely to net the controversial duo at least £100m – and spark speculation that property prices have peaked. The Wilsons met with widespread condemnation earlier this year when it was revealed they had sent eviction notices to 200 tenants on housing benefit, saying they preferred eastern European migrants who default much less frequently than single mums on welfare. They first shot to prominence in 2006 when it was revealed that they had built up Britain's biggest buy-to-let empire, sometimes snapping up a property every day in the early part of the decade. Read more on the Guardian website.