Homeless people in England will not have to sleep rough this winter, according to United Kingdom Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who has unveiled a 442-million-pound ($601-million) initiative to put a roof over everyone's head.
The effort, which will not extend to Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland because of their devolved governments, mirrors a drive Burnham oversaw while mayor of Manchester, and follows him pledging to end rough sleeping as soon as he took over as prime minister on July 20.
As he unveiled the initiative, he urged everyone to pull together, in the way people went the extra mile during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the UK found emergency accommodation for 37,000 rough sleepers.
"We did it in the pandemic. We can do it again," he said. "But it needs all of us. Government will put the money in. But I'm asking leaders in communities and sectors across society to play their part locally too."
He said all of England's homeless people will be out of the cold by the Dec 25 Christmas holiday.
