US Edition
Scrapping the Vagrancy Act
4 Articles
4 Articles
Scrapping the Vagrancy Act
The criminalisation of homelessness and poverty is not truly ending—only being reshaped ~ Tony ~ On 10 June 2025 the Government confirmed it will repeal the Vagrancy Act 1824 by Spring 2026 (you just can’t rush these things), and whilst the news was widely and justifiably welcomed by homelessness charities, we should sound a note of caution: we have been here before. The previous Government also said it would repeal the Act, only to announce eve…
Instead of issuing fines, the municipality will identify people who sleep outside and refer them to care.
Vagrancy Act to be scrapped; a landmark moment - St Martins
Jan Sheldon, St Martins CEO said, "The scrapping of a 200-year-old law criminalising rough sleeping is indeed a landmark moment and quite frankly should have been scrapped at least 100 years ago. Rough sleeping is not a crime but an act of desperation. The post Vagrancy Act to be scrapped; a landmark moment appeared first on St Martins.
Law enforcement officers and police officers will no longer issue fines to homeless people for sleeping on the streets, even in the event of nuisance. This was legally possible because it was included as an offence in the General Local By-law (APV), but it will be removed from the APV. This is evident from a letter from Mayor Halsema that was made public today. She already called fining sleeping homeless people 'shameful' in 2021 and after that …
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 50% of the sources lean Left, 50% of the sources lean Right
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
