A FORMER homeless man has said he does not believe the government will revoke powers that allow police to arrest rough sleepers.

Jai Teather, 43, from Malvern, spoke out after pressure grew on the government to repeal the Vagrancy Act.

The Act gives the police powers to arrest the homeless, just for living on the streets.

Mr Teather spent around six months living homeless, after a decline in his mental health.

He said: “The government, particularly the Tories, always pick on the weakest in society.

“They won’t change the law as they struggle to lock up the real criminals and, with the austerity cuts, they see homeless people as an easy target.”

Speaking on behalf of the Worcester Cares, the City Homeless and the Vulnerable People forum, Mel Kirk chief executive of Maggs Day Centre, said: “The Vagrancy Act is outdated and needs to be updated to fit the requirements of Homelessness in the 21st Century.

“The current Act does nothing to resolve the root causes of homelessness and in fact, it’s more likely to push someone further away from the vital services that help people to move away from the streets.”

Jon Sparkes, chief executive of the homelessness campaign charity, Crisis, which is lobbying the government to scrap the act, said: “The continued practice of criminalising homeless people under the Vagrancy Act is a disgrace. There are real solutions to resolving people’s homelessness – arrest and prosecution are not among them.

“Of course, police and councils must be able to respond to the concerns of local residents in cases of genuine anti-social activity, but we need to see an approach that allows vulnerable people access to the vital services they need to move away from the streets for good. The Act now represents everything that’s wrong with how homeless and vulnerable people are treated. It must be scrapped.”

Lynn Denham, Labour’s Parliamentary candidate for Worcester, said: “I fully support the repeal of the outdated Vagrancy Act.

“Treating rough sleepers as criminals does not solve the underlying causes of homelessness and makes it harder for them to access support to move away from the streets."

The Vagrancy Act (1824) was originally brought in to make it easier for police to clear the streets of destitute soldiers returning from the Napoleonic Wars in England.