People are dying on the streets
Last week, a report revealed an unprecedented number of deaths among homeless people in France in 2023: at least 735 men and women who have experienced life on the streets have died – a tragic record. While the Olympic games poorly tried to hide it, the number of persons experiencing homelessness is booming in France. In 2023, more than 200,000 people were living on the French streets, with millions more being ”poorly housed”. Homelessness is not just about the absence of a home but also about the lack of security, stability, and safety in one's living situation.
This is not strictly a French issue. On any given night, almost one million people in Europe are homeless. The UK has the highest rate of homelessness in Europe, with 1 in every 200 families experiencing it. According to the Big Issue charity, in March of this year, a record number of families were living in emergency temporary accommodation - 117,450, up 12.3% from 2023 and the highest levels since records began in 1998. The total number of children in emergency temporary accommodation is also at a record high of 151,630.
After France and the UK, where homelessness has doubled in little over a decade, Czechia and Germany rank high in European homelessness rates. However, it remains difficult to compare countries as they document data differently.
An 'unfavourable economic context', unaffordable housing market, and, depending on the country, migration is the official mix of reasons explaining the rise of homelessness. Another argument is the repressive measures trying to respond to this issue that might aggravate it. Indeed, French NGOs warn against a series of measures such as the law against squatting and police orders banning food distribution in Paris and Calais.