Exclusive
RISHI’S VOW
Homeless people WON’T be fined if they smell but we will crack down on nuisance behaviour, vows Rishi Sunak
The PM is facing another backbench Tory rebellion over his plans to crackdown on rough sleeping
RISHI Sunak last night denied that he's planning to fine rough sleepers for smelling bad.
On The Sun's new show Never Mind The Ballots, the PM shut down claims that he wants to charge homeless people up to £2,500 if police deem them a "nuisance".
2
2
More than 40 Tory backbenchers are plotting to rebel against the Criminal Justice Bill, which they believe "criminalises" homelessness.
They say the Bill is drafted so widely it could result in people being arrested or fined for having an “excessive odour”.
In a no-holds barred grilling, the Prime Minister also:
- VOWED to quit Euro court if needed to stop the boats
- INVITED Boris Johnson to rally Tory troops in election battle
- STILL didn't know when general election will be
- ANSWERED your quickfire questions
- CLASHED with fuming cabbie over small boats crisis
- PROMISES he WILL tackle disgraceful conditions for veterans
- INSISTED his plan IS working as he hailed tax cuts
And - in it's current form - the proposed law would expand police powers, allowing them to move on homeless people, fine them or threaten prison time.
The Bill has been iced by No10 while whips scramble to negotiate with MPs on how to handle rough sleeping.
'But the boats are still coming!' Rishi Sunak grilled over migrant crisis on Never Mind The Ballots
But tonight, when pressed on the bill by Sun Political Editor Harry Cole, Mr Sunak said he won't pass a law which fines people for being smelly.
Mr Sunak told host Harry Cole: "I wouldn’t believe everything that you read.
Most read in The Sun
"What we are going to do is make sure that police have the powers they need to tackle behaviour that is intimidating to other people.
"I think it is important that people are able to walk around their local communities without fear of being intimidated."
Last night, the PM denied Britain's most vulnerable citizens will be forced to find thousands.
He added that an old law dating back to the 1800s - the Vagrancy Act - which makes not having a home illegal, will be repealed.
Rishi on renters
Rishi Sunak last night denied he's thrown private renters under the bus by watering down reforms to the sector.
The PM sparked outrage last week after The Sun revealed that he's delayed a promise to ban section 21 no-fault evictions.
Previously, Housing Secretary Michael Gove pledged to impose the ban before a general election.
Now, renters will have to wait until until the Ministry of Justice conducts a review into the "readiness of courts" to handle disputes stemming from the change.
Mr Sunak said: "We want to make sure renters know we were backing them.
"Our Renters Reform Bill will end no fault evictions.
"It’s going to come alongside other changes we’re making to improve standards in the private rented sector, which is really important.
"We want to make sure that landlords provide decent and safe accommodation for people. And that local authorities have the power to intervene where that’s not happening."
The PM said: "That's not right.
"We’re investing billions to tackle homelessness.
"Whether that’s providing move-on accommodation or to tackle drug and alcohol addictions.
"That package of support is making a difference and what we’ve seen is levels of rough sleeping is lower than it was pre-pandemic, lower than the peak and is heading in a downward direction."
The revolt against the Bill is being championed by joint-1922 committee chief Bob Blackman.
And it has the backing of dozens of One Nation moderate MPs, including former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith and ex-minister Damian Green.
RISHI Sunak faced Sun readers this Wednesday in a no-holds-barred grilling.
RISHI Sunak last night paid tribute to the three "brave Brits
The PM also demanded a massive increase in the amount of aid as he warned of the "increasingly intolerable" situation.
He made his first comments about the deaths of three British nationals on The Sun's Never Mind The Ballots.
Three veterans - former Special Boat Service hero John Chapman, 57, ex-Royal Marine James Henderson, 33, and Army veteran James Kirby - were killed by an Israeli air strikes while delivering vital aid.
Mr Sunak told The Sun's political editor Harry Cole: "It's an awful, awful tragedy.
"To think these were brave Brits who were risking their lives to bring aid to people in need in Gaza... to have lost their lives in these circumstances is a tragedy. My thoughts obviously are with their families."
He ramped up calls on Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu for a "transparent independent investigation" into their deaths.
"I spoke to Prime Minister Netanyahu last night and I was very clear with him that the situation is increasingly intolerable and what we urgently need to see is a thorough, transparent investigation into what happened.
"But also a dramatic increase in the amount of aid getting into Gaza, removing the barriers.
"Also, closer work with aid agencies so that things like this don't happen again."
And while Britain supported "Israel's right" to flush out Hamas terrorists, he demanded that more aid be allowed into Gaza.
Pressure has grown on the government recently to suspend export licences for arms sales to Israel.
Pressed on the issue, Mr Sunak said all such licences are kept under "careful" review but stopped short of a hard pledge to revoke them.
Mr Sunak said: "We've always had a very careful export licensing regime that we adhere to. There are a set of rules regulations and procedures that we'll always follow.
"And I've been consistently clear with Prime Minister Netanyahu since the start of this conflict that whilst of course we defend Israel's right to defend itself and it's people against attacks from Hamas, they have to do that in accordance with humanitarian law, protect civilian lives, get more aid into Gaza.
"What we want to see is an immediate humanitarian pause to allow more aid in and crucially for more hostages to also be released - and that's what we'll continue to push for.
"What's happened is a tragedy, and it shouldn't have happened and there are questions that need answering and that's why I've been very clear that what we expect is a thorough, transparent investigation into what has happened.
"Also I want to see a dramatic increase in the amount of aid flowing into Gaza and closer work with the aid agencies so these types of things just do not happen."
Mr Blackman said: “A lot of colleagues believe that the bill as it stands is completely unacceptable because it would have the effect of criminalising people who have no choice but to sleep on the streets.
“We are urging ministers to think again.”
Polly Neate, chief executive of homelessness charity Shelter, said: “Parliament must not enact this legislation.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
"Instead of punishing people for being homeless, politicians should be trying to prevent them from ending up on the streets.
“Everyone at risk of sleeping rough should have a right to suitable emergency accommodation, and to end homelessness for good it must invest in genuinely affordable social homes — we need 90,000 a year.”
Topics