CommonSpace speaks to homeless participants in ‘tent town’

Jason Miller, protest organiser: “Glasgow City Council have a legal obligation to find homes for everyone in Glasgow”

Edinburgh housing activist: “Airbnb coupled with high rents and very little council houses have created the perfect storm leaving the lowest in society living in misery.” 

Scale of problem prompts calls for a review of social housing in Scotland’s capital

Dublin has the most severe housing crisis in Europe

COMMONSPACE editor Ben Wray spoke to North Dublin Bay Community Crisis housing activist Aisling Heddermann about the housing crisis in Dublin and Ireland and how the housing movement there is trying to fight for housing rights. Dublin has the least affordable housing of any city in Europe, with rents over 50 per cent of income. Ben and Aisling discussed:

0.50: The nature of the housing and homelessness crisis in Dublin and Ireland, and why it is so severe.

Scotland’s tenants’ union has reiterated its call for an end to forced evictions during winter to prevent further deaths of homeless people

Figures revealed through Freedom of Information show 1136 MOD properties currently sit empty in Scotland

Edinburgh city council sending homeless Scots’ to Bed & Breakfasts as far away as Motherwell and Livingston for extended periods

A councillor in Edinburgh who was has previously been homeless has slammed the capital authority for breaking the law on how long homeless people can be housed in temporary accommodation.

Councils are allowed to house homeless people in temporary accommodation for up to a week, but a shortage of council housing has mean't some are remaining longer in bed & breakfast (B&B) style accommodation.

The number of homeless people in Scotland is on the rise – figures from Shelter Scotland show homeless applications rose in 2017, the first increase in 9 years.

The Scottish Government published its ending homelessness & rough sleeping action plan on 27 November. The plan aims to “achieve a fundamental shift to rapid rehousing”, yet campaigners argue more should be done to address the issue now.