Homelessness On The Rise In Reykjavík

Representatives of the opposition parties in the Reykjavík city council held a meeting on the “emergency among the growing homeless population in Reykjavík” yesterday, Morgunblaðið reports.

The opposition issued an official statement, which says that they are stunned about the passivity the city council demonstrates towards the issue, as the council is going into its summer holiday without having solved the problem. The opposition further states that they had requested a special session with the welfare council to tackle the matter in its full complexity earlier this summer. They were told that it was not possible to hold the meeting earlier than August 10. Meanwhile, the distress of homeless people is increasing, the opposition stated.

The opposition parties have agreed that emergency action needs to be taken immediately, they have requested an emergency meeting with the city council’s committee on homelessness next week.

In a statement the ombudsman for the Icelandic parliament Alþingi published earlier in July, he reported that the number of homeless has increased by 95% from 2012 to 2017.