LAW TO CRIMINALISE ROUGH SLEEPING SET TO BE SCRAPPED – New legislation will still target “organised begging by gangs” and certain forms of trespassing
In a major policy shift, the UK government has announced that rough sleeping will no longer be treated as a criminal offence, as it moves to repeal the 200-year-old Vagrancy Act.
First introduced in 1824, the Vagrancy Act was originally designed to deal with rising homelessness in post-Napoleonic Britain. But now, the government is officially scrapping it, calling it “cruel and outdated.”
Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner said the Labour government is “drawing a line under nearly two centuries of injustice” and ensuring that no one is ever again criminalised simply for sleeping rough.
But while the repeal is being hailed by many as a long-overdue step forward, questions are being raised about what’s replacing it.
According to the government’s statement, new legislation will still target “organised begging by gangs” and certain forms of trespassing, raising concern that the replacement may still contain provisions that disproportionately affect the homeless.
The move to repeal the act follows a significant drop in convictions: in 2023, just 59 people were convicted under the law, compared to over 800 in 2011. Campaigners have long said this is proof the law is both outdated and ineffective.
