Rejected petition Requision empty hotel rooms to shelter the homeless during the COVID-19 pandemic

Rejected on 17 April 2020

We call for parliament to make use of the abandoned hospitality industry by requisioning empty hotel rooms to shelter the homeless during the COVID-19 pandemic. The homeless are high risk and have no way of self isolating during the crisis.

We call for parliament to help with the basic humanity of sheltering vulnerable members of society from the virus, in turn also relieving pressures on the already overworked NHS that homelessness causes. France has already promised to provide 170 hotel rooms for the homeless in Paris to self isolate by the weekend. The UK needs to be showing the same level of care to the citizens on our streets.

Why was this petition rejected?

We can't publish petitions when the request is something that's already happening or something that has been announced since you started your petition.

We think your petition is covered by Government or Parliament action already. If you'd like something else, you could start a new petition clearly explaining what it is.

Since you started your petition the Government has instructed local authorities to urgently procure accommodation for people on the streets if they have not already done so, and have said they will support local authorities to do so if they are struggling to procure sufficient units: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/876466/Letter_from_Minister_Hall_to_Local_Authorities.pdf

You can find out more about coronavirus and how you can protect yourself and others here:

www.gov.uk/coronavirus
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/

You can read NHS tips to help if you are worried about coronavirus here: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/coronavirus-covid-19-anxiety-tips

You can read impartial analysis of the Government response to coronavirus and policy developments here:
https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/coronavirus/

You may also be interested to know that because of the large number of petitions that have been started in relation to coronavirus, the Petitions Committee has been questioning the Government about its response to the coronavirus outbreak.
 
Find out more and watch the Committee put questions suggested by petitioners to Government Ministers and the Deputy Chief Medical Officer: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/326/petitions-committee/news/145767/committee-question-deputy-chief-medical-officer-and-ministers-on-coronavirus-response/
 
Read letters asking further questions of Government Ministers: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/326/petitions-committee/publications/3/correspondence/

We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.