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23 January 2018updated 24 Jun 2021 12:27pm

The politicians resurrecting a Dickensian law to make homeless people into criminals

Why the 1824 Vagrancy Act is being used by councils to prosecute rough sleepers, and how to stop it.

By Thomas Zagoria

In 1824, the Earl of Liverpool was Prime Minister, Lord Byron was dying of fever on his way to fight the Ottomans, Australia was officially named “Australia”, and life expectancy in the UK was about 40.

1824 was also the year from which current government policy on rough sleeping gets its statutory backing.

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