This petition was submitted during the 2019 to 2024 Parliament
Rejected petition Update or repeal the Vagrancy Act
Rejected on
Update the Vagrancy Act so that sleeping rough and begging is no longer illegal, or repeal it entirely.
The Vagrancy Act of 1824 makes it illegal to sleep rough and beg, therefore criminalizing the homeless. It needs to be reviewed so that sleeping rough and begging is no longer a criminal offence. This would be in line with policies in Scotland and Ireland and offer better treatment for the homeless.
Why was this petition rejected?
There’s already a petition about this issue. We cannot accept a new petition when we already have one about a very similar issue.
You are more likely to get action on this issue if you sign and share a single petition.
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/554836
We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.