A total of 518 homeless people died in Scotland in the past three years. This shocking figure will come as no surprise to campaigners who have been highlighting the crisis for many years.
First Minister Humza Yousaf has said he will make housing a priority. But the SNP has been talking of this as a “top priority” for years. This comes hot on the heels of similar failures in other “top priority” areas such as the attainment gap, child poverty and drugs deaths. The current pattern can offer little other than dread for families in the grip of a cost of living crisis who are one catastrophe away from being chucked on to the streets.
It is no surprise that Energy Secretary Grant Shapps has welcomed the move – despite the fact that the new rules are voluntary and only stop over-85s from having prepayment meters forced upon them.