A tent city next to Mayfair: Why cutting homelessness might be harder than before

Labour says it will put Britain back on track to ending homelessness’ in its manifesto.

In 1999 , Tony Blair committed to reducing the number of rough sleepers by two-thirds in three years .

By 2002 , his government declared it had achieved its target a year early - the number had fallen from 1,850 to 532 .

Now, the latest official figures put it at 3,898 - 120% higher than in 2010 .

Councils spent more than 1bn on it last year , and the problem is pushing some local authorities towards bankruptcy.

Treasury rules mean that Whitehall will only reimburse local authorities 90% of a figure calculated in 2011 for the cost of temporary accommodation, leading to an average monthly shortfall of about 350 per household.

New government will face a more difficult and more expensive task than its predecessor in the 1990s and 2000s .

Experts urge the government to align the allocations system for social housing in England with what happens in Scotland .

Right to Buy sales only represent a small proportion of social housing stock, say commentators.

Home Office evicting asylum seekers from accommodation within days of giving them permission to remain in the UK .