On Tuesday 5th of March, Emmaus SLC staff member, Henry Mullins, attended the ‘Ending Homelessness Together: Mass Lobby of Parliament’ lobby at the Emmanuel Centre, London, representing Emmaus SLC.
The lobby was organised by Homeless Link and Riverside Housing association. The purpose of the lobby was for local MPs to state their policies addressing homelessness and for them to gain a better understanding of the current situation by directly communicating with homeless organisations.
Hopefully, by listening to front line homeless organisations they will be able to develop the most effective approach for a long-term solution to homelessness.
Considering that there is a possible general election approaching it is the ideal time to make political parties aware of the severity of the current issues around homelessness and how they need to act urgently to make a difference.
MPs from the Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democratic parties were present to address their views on the current state of homelessness, what actions they are currently doing to tackle the issue, and their plans for the future. The MPs then took questions from the audience and had the opportunity to meet with them during the break.
The Lobby was not just a great opportunity to inform MPs about homelessness but also a chance to meet and connect with other people working in the homeless sector. Henry spoke to a lot of people representing different homeless organisations based all around the country and he enjoyed learning about the work they’re doing to end homelessness in their areas.
Overall, he found the experience to be very useful. He was able to understand how certain MPs view the issues around homelessness and what their approaches are as well as learn about the passionate work other homeless organisations are doing.
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