Edinburgh council faces legal hurdle in housing 50 homeless people after pandemic

Housing migrants after crisis ‘against the law’

Housing convener Kate Campbell wants to ensure no-one is thrown onto the streets

COUNCILLORS have been warned it would be illegal for the council to continue housing 50 homeless people classed as having “no recourse to public funds” once the Covid crisis is over.

But housing convener Kate Campbell has pledged to work with other councils, charities and the Scottish Government to find a way to ensure people are not thrown onto the street.

Councillors sought clarification of the legal position over UK Government legislation dictating that many migrants should have no recourse to public funds (NRPF), which includes housing.

A report to the housing committee tomorrow says: “Continuing to provide accommodation post-pandemic would likely be deemed to be illegal and may prejudice a service user’s immigration application and future status.”

It also says that if the council were to continue housing those with NRPF while other local authorities did not, people assessed as having NRPF from the rest of Scotland and the UK could come to Edinburgh,

But Cllr Campbell said there was a lot of work going on to see what could be done.

“We need to keep working with other local authorities and the Scottish Government and the third sector to address the issue. The report sets out the legal position, but this is so important there will be a lot of collaborative working to look at how we can address it because we don’t want anyone to be destitute.

“I know Scottish Government ministers have written a number of times to the UK government to ask them to rethink this in terms of the legal position but they have not had a positive response.

“It’s about what we can do within Scottish networks. Are there things the third sector might be able to do, for example, that Scottish Government and local authorities couldn’t? And how could we support them?”

She said the issue was a bigger challenge for Edinburgh than for many councils, but it had to be tackled in a national context. “We need to be consistent across Scotland in the way we deal with it.”

Green housing spokesman Chas Booth said it was right the council had provided housing during the pandemic for people classed as having NRPF. “They are often fleeing war or persecution in their home countries and so providing safety and security to rebuild their lives is not only morally right, it is sensible for public health too.

“But what happens when the worst of the crisis has passed? Do the same people get abandoned as the UK Home Office directs, leading to homelessness and destitution? I don’t believe that is the kind of capital Edinburgh wants to be. So the council must explore every option to ensure that people are not turned out into the streets.”

Tory housing spokesman Jim Campbell said council officials must not be asked to do anything potentially illegal. He said: “If NRPF is causing serious concerns the correct way to deal with it is to raise it with Westminster politicians.”

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