Manchester leader: Street beggars 'commuting' from London Published duration 6 October 2015

image caption Manchester City Council has been involved in a legal bid to remove protesters who set up a homeless camp

Beggars are "commuting" from London to Manchester and 80% "are not homeless", a council leader has claimed.

Writing on his blog , Manchester City Council leader Sir Richard Leese said: "We've had at least one example of somebody commuting from London to beg on our streets."

He suggested Mancunians were "a generous lot" and "more than willing to put something into an empty cup".

One homeless charity described the situation as "complicated".

The Labour politician said: "I suspect that most people who give to beggars think the money is going to pay for food and shelter, when the most likely beneficiaries are the nearest off-licence, drug dealer or the mysterious people seen dropping some beggars off in the city centre and then picking them up again later in the day."

image caption Sir Richard Leese claims that a beggar is "commuting" from London to Manchester to beg

He said his council would soon have "real engagement" with "generous Manchester people" about how their generosity can most benefit people in genuine need "largely by supporting those voluntary organisations best placed to work with people on the street, rather than supporting individual drug and alcohol habits."

He acknowledged homelessness was a "serious and growing problem", not only in Manchester, but across the country.

"Lack of affordable housing, welfare cuts and cuts to support services have all fuelled this growth," Sir Richard added.

Referring to the homelessness camp in Manchester city centre , he said: "One thing we do know is that plonking tents in the city centre is not the way of dealing with homelessness, although in reality many of the tent occupiers are not homeless.

"I think we have a number of serial protesters who are quite willing to use some of our most vulnerable citizens for their own political ends, including making it difficult for our street homelessness team to reach out to people who need help."

'Complex needs'

He said the council had been able to house everyone in the camps who was willing to be housed.

Sir Richard said he was working on proposals "to ensure that as winter comes in, nobody needs to be out on the street."

But a spokesman for Homeless Link, the national membership charity for organisations working directly with people who become homeless in England, said: "The situation is very complicated; just as not all homeless people are sleeping rough, not everyone begging on the streets during the day is homeless.

"Many of those of begging or who are homeless will have complex needs, will be vulnerable and need support from the appropriate agencies."

The organisation campaigns to make services better and for policy changed that will help end homelessness.

Kate MacDonald, chief executive of Young People's Support Foundation, a charity that works with young people in Manchester, said there were a lot more people on the street than 18 months ago.