No guidance issued to Edinburgh Council on homeless EU migrants

Since February, the UK government has treated rough sleeping as a “misuse” of EU freedom of movement rights, prompting concerns from charities and legal experts that homeless people will be arrested and deported.

Although the Home Office said it would work with local authorities and charities in implementing the new policy, FOI requests have revealed that no direct guidance has been issued to City of Edinburgh Council.

Adam Lang, head of communications and policy at Shelter Scotland, told Holyrood: “This change to UK Government guidance on administrative removal of EEA nationals makes an already complex legal situation even harder to understand for very vulnerable people who may not know their rights.

“We are concerned this new guidance may be misinterpreted or applied incorrectly to remove people unlawfully. We would encourage anyone facing action under the new rules or those who know them to seek housing advice urgently.

“All rough sleepers are people being failed by the housing safety net which should catch them when they face the tragedy of homelessness. It is a visible sign of how we as a society are failing to provide the basic human right of a home for everyone.”