Three in four say poor must not pay for deficit

As Crisis opens its doors to homeless people this Christmas, the charity warns that despite the budget deficit, 75% of the British public want the Government to address the growing gap between rich and poor.

A YouGov poll commissioned by Crisis also shows that the majority of people in UK (60% of those with an opinion) say that the recession has made them more worried about the gap between rich and poor and the same proportion want to see the poorest protected from budget cuts as they can least afford to pay.

The pre-Budget report has already confirmed cuts of £500m in housing and regeneration budgets plus further cuts in services funded by legal aid. With potentially huge cuts in public spending expected whoever wins the general election, the survey showed that 63% of people with an opinion think the Government should continue to support services that prevent and help to tackle homelessness, provided other vital public services are not compromised.

Leslie Morphy, Chief Executive of Crisis, said: “The British public wants action to address the gap between rich and poor. In a country of 242,000 millionaires, nothing highlights the stark contrast more than the homeless people we will welcome to our centres this Christmas. This recession has hit the poorest hardest and the British public is not prepared for them to bear the brunt of any public spending cuts. With the election looming, politicians vying for votes must recognise people’s desire for a fairer society. They must not forget those who are poorest, amongst whom homeless people are some of the most vulnerable. They must pledge to protect them.”

Following a year in which half a million people lost their jobs and repossessions have been at their highest rate since the mid 1990s, the prospect of homelessness remains a serious concern. Whilst some measures taken by the Government and the private sector have had an effect, such as in slowing the rate of repossessions, nearly a quarter (23%) of people said they were still worried that, as they look to the new year, they might lose their home or be forced to move out because of the UK’s current economic problems. In addition, many tens of thousands of homeless people never benefited from the boom times and face being left even further behind with greater pressures on housing, jobs and support.

Leslie Morphy said: “Despite predictions of an economic upturn we are not out of the woods yet. A quarter of people are still worried and previous recessions tell us that unemployment and broader issues and pressures such as mental health problems, relationship breakdown and, in turn, homelessness, all follow on for some time behind the initial economic turmoil.”

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