A THIRD of Melbourne’s beggars are international tourists seeking to boost their travel funds.

Victoria Police, Melbourne City Council and the Salvation Army have raised concerns over a spike in numbers of bogus beggars during the holiday season.

Salvation Army Major Brendan Nottle said men from Germany and Sweden — most under 30 — made up the bulk of the backpacking beggars.

“Some of those international backpackers are operating on a very tight budget and so in their minds, they see it as OK to beg to try to raise additional funds,” Maj Nottle said.

“They don’t see that there are any issues with begging. They think that’s just something they can do.”

He asked Melburnians not to give them money.

“Often Melburnians have good hearts, they want to help, so if a person finds themselves in that situation and they want to help, we suggest offer to buy the person a meal,” he said.

Lord Mayor Robert Doyle said he had also been briefed on the issue.

“Service providers tell me that international tourists make up around a third of the people begging on Melbourne’s streets at the moment,” Cr Doyle said.

“Tourists may not be aware that begging is illegal in Victoria and it’s important that we communicate with them and put them in contact with the services they need.”

Stephen Russell, a rough sleeper who has been on the streets for six months, said he directly experienced money being handed over to travellers and therefore missed out.

Mr Russell questioned why tourists who could afford an international plane ticket and accommodation were on the streets asking for money.

“It’s not fair. It makes the police give us a hard time,” Mr Russell, 48, said.

It comes just weeks after the Herald Sun revealed carparks in Port Melbourne and St Kilda had become pseudo-campsites for travellers ­illegally seeking to save cash.

Penny-pinching tourists have also taken advantage of the generosity of Melbourne charities by lining up at services feeding Melbourne’s homeless and taking the food from more needy mouths, prompting some welfare services to operate later in a bid to avoid backpackers.

The City of Melbourne has handed over a further $25,000 to the Salvation Army to set up another anti-begging strategy.

Under the pilot program, which will run until February 28, teams drive around the city in vans and offer a range of services for those down and out during the day.

The latest data shows that 142 people regularly sleep rough in the city, up from 101 in 2010.

christopher.gillett@news.com.au