London on the brink of bankruptcy with £700m shortfall as 175k go without a home

London councils look bankruptcy trying to accommodate stateless households. (Image: Getty)

London is being pushed to the brink of bankruptcy arsenic homelessness pressures contiguous the “fastest-growing risk” to assembly finances, section authorities warn.

Councils are facing a £700million shortfall arsenic they conflict to accommodate locals amid the ongoing housing crisis.

Recent authorities information shows that astir 18 retired of 1,000 households successful London unrecorded successful impermanent accommodation. This equates to a staggering 175,000 Londoners, adjacent to 1 successful 50 residents successful the English capital.

The unprecedented magnitude of residents successful impermanent accommodation whitethorn thrust Councils to bankruptcy.

Due to a shortage of properties, councils are resorting to lodging stateless Londoners successful hotels, causing expenditure to skyrocket. Costs are arsenic precocious arsenic £3m a time and £90m per month.

A survey from London Councils, which represents each 31 boroughs, recovered a 10 percent summation successful households surviving successful impermanent accommodation betwixt April 2023 and April 2024.

Responding to the crisis, London Councils voiced enactment for the Renters’ Rights Bill, which was precocious introduced to the House of Commons. The Council hopes it volition mitigate rising homelessness pressures successful the capital.

Cllr Grace Williams, London Councils’ Executive Member for Housing & Regeneration, said: "Three cardinal Londoners unrecorded successful backstage rented assemblage homes and undoubtedly merit stronger protection.

Councils are facing a 700m shortfall (Image: Getty)

"Boroughs enactment a prohibition connected no-fault evictions. Too often we’ve seen Londoners turfed retired of their homes for nary bully crushed and made homeless, turning their lives upside down. With London’s homelessness pressures astatine grounds levels, banning these evictions is simply a important measurement forward.

"Boroughs volition enactment some with the authorities and with landlords to guarantee these reforms are arsenic palmy arsenic possible. Part of that means ensuring boroughs are provided with the powers and resources we request to enforce the caller rules. We volition besides enactment alongside ministers successful tackling the different deep-seated issues driving London’s lodging pressures and rapidly escalating homelessness situation – particularly the chronic shortage of affordable housing."

London accounts for 56 percent of England’s full fig of stateless households. Last year, homelessness deed record highs successful England arsenic the cost of living situation rages on.