French senator proposed homeless to accommodate in Paris’ empty apartments
As temperatures outside are dropping, French socialist senator Jean Brossard filed a petition demanding that empty Paris apartments be transferred to the state so that to further be occupied by the homeless, RIA Novosti reports
It is informed that 330 thousand homeless people currently live on the streets in France, which is 30 thousand more than last year. Against the background of the cold weather, the politician called for the homeless to be settled in empty apartments. According to him, ‘a cold weather plan’ has been launched in Paris. It implies the creation of an additional 274 places in shelters, whereas 3,015 people sleep on the streets in Paris. At the same time, the number of empty apartments continues to grow. It is reported that more than 130 thousand apartments are not occupied, which is a large figure accounting for 10 percent of the total number of housing in Paris. As the senator noted, 20 thousand apartments have been empty for more than two years.
The politician said it is no longer ‘possible to accept the fact that people are sleeping on the streets while apartments are empty’. He demands that the government allows the authorities of Paris to take this housing for their own use.
