Melbourne homeless camp crisis: Leaders pledge clean-out
BEGGARS and the homeless will be banned from sleeping on the streets and police will adopt “get tough” tactics to remove the squalid Flinders St station camp.
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BEGGARS and the homeless will be banned from sleeping on the streets and police will adopt “get tough” tactics to remove the squalid Flinders St station camp.
The Herald Sun can reveal Melbourne city council will pass a new bylaw outlawing sleeping on the streets, in a policy switch it is hoped will also help deliver a long-term fix for the homelessness crisis.
After 48 hours of inaction and empty words, police and city authorities performed a dramatic about-face on Thursday, promising action to clean out the filthy camp, which continued to fester on Thursday.
Lord Mayor Robert Doyle pledged to take the new policy to the next council meeting.
Premier Daniel Andrews said on Friday that all of the people camping outside Flinders St station had been offered accommodation by the State Government.
“The first and most important thing is to find these people a safe and secure place to have a roof over their head,” he said.
“And for many and varied reasons they’ve chosen not to take the state up on its generous offer of crisis support and homeless support that they need. That’s a matter for them.
“It is very unsettling to move around the city and see large groups of homeless people like that – I understand that – for tourists, for visitors, for families, particularly at this time of year.”
Mr Andrews said it “was very unnerving ... and it’s not a very good look”.
“So let’s find these people somewhere to live, let’s make sure the city is presenting its best self to international visitors and then let’s make sure the police and bylaws officers at the City of Melbourne have got the powers and resources they need to get that job done,” he added.
Undercover police will also pursue beggars who only pretend to be homeless, as Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton said his officers were doing all they can to deal with the “disgusting” city slums.
Mr Ashton said impostors had come into the city specifically to “shake down” Australian Open tourists for money.
The Herald Sun has learnt that on Monday the government will hold a crisis meeting with police, the city council and homeless support bodies.
Police want the City of Melbourne to strengthen bylaws to stop street camps. Bylaws now only ban structures such as tents, tarpaulins and makeshift coverings.
Cr Doyle said he was happy to put the police proposal to council, where it is expected to pass, next month.
“I am happy to put this proposal before councillors at our first meeting if it is Victoria Police’s recommendation, and they guarantee that they will enforce it,” Cr Doyle said.
“Police already have powers to arrest for obstruction, for drug use, for threatening or aggressive behaviour, and for begging, and I would like to see them make full use of those powers as well.
“I welcome any move by police to bring an end to what has become a blight on our city, and the City of Melbourne continues to work with them to do that.”
Mr Ashton said that Victoria Police “don’t enforce laws that don’t exist”.
“We’ve been meeting with the city council about what extra bylaws we can get, because I think it looks disgusting what you see in the city,” Mr Ashton said. “Whether it’s that law (no camping) or some other law that meets the same ends, that’s something we have to discuss.”
He said that police would focus on begging during the rest of the Australian Open.
“These are not homeless. These are people that are choosing to camp ... because people are visiting the city at this time of year and there’s more people to shake down for money,” Mr Ashton said.
RITA PANAHI: HOMELESS CAMP LIKE A THIRD WORLD CESSPIT
Former Coalition housing minister Wendy Lovell said she had reports of some beggars getting up to $300 a day.
“I would encourage all people who want to give a donation to actually give it to organisations like Melbourne City Mission or the Salvation Army or Launch Housing, who are actually helping the genuinely homeless,” she said.
Cr Doyle, who returned from holidays to handle the crisis, said giving to beggars only entrenched the problem.
“Do not give money to beggars — it’s as simple as that,” the mayor said.
“I know people are kind- hearted, but don’t give money, don’t give bedding, don’t give tents. That doesn’t help.”
Police Minister Lisa Neville admitted the camp was “confronting.”
“One of the things the police have raised with the City of Melbourne is if (council) put in a bylaw that prevents camping or the use of the streets to sleep like this, then the police would enforce that and we would support them in doing that,” she said.
Businessman and serial lord mayoral candidate Gary Morgan called on council to implement his policy of hiring the homeless to point out potholes that needed fixing.
He said the current crisis showed “the inability of federal and state governments to tackle the real problem involving the unemployed and under employed”.
HOMELESS UNDER WATCH AS PUBLIC LOSE PATIENCE
POLICE were out in force on Thursday amid growing public concern over the sprawling homeless camp taking over the footpath outside Flinders St station.
A group of five officers patrolled the area, stopping to speak with members of the camp, as curious tourists paused to take photographs of the squalid spectacle.
One homeless woman complained to the media that their presence was stopping her from getting to sleep, while another tapped away on an iPad.
Officers directed one beggar to remove his sign opposite the Flinders St station steps, and moved him on.
HALF OF PEOPLE SLEEPING ON STREETS NOT GENUINE HOMELESS: SALVATION ARMY
HOMELESS PEOPLE MOCKING OUR CITY: CHRISTOPHER BANTICK
Public patience with the camp also seemed to be wearing thin. One woman carrying an Australian Open bag shouted: “Get off the street, you’re making it look untidy for everyone.”
Her calls were met with a chorus of jeers and expletives from the rough sleepers.
Another woman said: “I see they can still afford their smack.”
Shop owner Vince said he had never seen anything like it in 45 years.
“It’s only in the past year this has happened,” he said.
When asked if they were worried they would soon be moved on by police, one homeless man said: “I know they won’t, they can’t — they’re not allowed.”
HATE WON’T HELP MELBOURNE’S HOMELESS: SALVATION ARMY MAJOR BRENDAN NOTTLE
He also said their numbers “doubled in size” at night and he did not believe police would move in after hours.
To the disbelief of many, one man stopped his car at the traffic lights just before 2.30pm and jumped out to deliver a dozen bags of food to camp dwellers.
The good Samaritan continued to unpack shopping bags from his car as the traffic lights turned green, to the annoyance of motorists behind.
One of the homeless men then distributed bottles of water and food to members of the camp. Another threw a glass bottle of alcohol on to the road, narrowly missing an oncoming car.
Police say they believe most people camping in the CBD are not genuinely homeless and have been left exasperated by existing laws that prevent them from reclaiming the streets.
As Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton pointed out: “We can’t enforce laws that don’t exist.”
24 HOURS IS A LONG TIME IN POLITICS ...
CITY OF MELBOURNE — Lord Mayor Robert Doyle
WEDNESDAY — “We don’t have any move-on powers and neither do the police, so you can’t physically do it.”
THURSDAY — “I welcome any move by police to bring an end to what has become a blight on our city, and the City of Melbourne continues to work with them to do that.”
VICTORIA POLICE
WEDNESDAY — “It’s not going to be particularly useful to move people on. We’re simply going to displace the problem,” — Superintendent David Clayton
THURSDAY — “We’ve been meeting with the city council about what extra bylaws we can get because I think it looks disgusting, what you see in the city,” — Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton
STATE GOVERNMENT
WEDNESDAY — “Under the Summary Offences Act, whether it’s vagrancy, whether it’s footpaths, whether it’s trespass, Victoria Police has the power to move people on,” — Acting Premier James Merlino.
THURSDAY — “One of the things the police have raised with the City of Melbourne is if (the council) put in a bylaw that prevents camping or the use of the streets to sleep like this, then the police would enforce that and we would support them in doing that,” — Police Minister Lisa Neville.
FRIDAY — “The first and most important thing is to find these people a safe and secure place to have a roof over their head. It is very unsettling to move around the city and see large groups of homeless people like that – I understand that – for tourists, for visitors, for families, particularly at this time of year” — Premier Daniel Andrews.
— with Bridget Davies and John Masanauskas