Brisbane City Council workers have sparked outrage for disposing of tents supposed to help house the city’s homeless community just days after they were given out.
It’s believed five tents were recently removed by council officers at Cathedral Place.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Brisbane City Council officers accused of throwing away tents given out to help the homeless.
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Northwest Community Group president Paul Slater, who organises and distributes supplies to those experiencing homelessness, told 7NEWS he had spoken to the council who confirmed “they’d thrown them into landfill”.
Software developer Rohan Pyne who is now homeless says his tent is his “sanctuary”.
“It just hits you in the face, not only the conditions but the fact that you now identify yourself as a homeless person,” he said.
Pyne says homeless people like himself were in constant fear of their tents being taken down by the council.
“(The tent) it is your sanctuary, when that gets removed it’s the equivalent to knocking someone’s house down.”
Greens mayoral candidate Jonathan Sriranganathan said the council was putting pressure on Brisbane’s homeless population “not to sleep in certain areas”.
“If they leave their belongings even for 20 minutes they might come back to find them taken,” he said.
However, the council’s Civic Cabinet Chair Vicki Howard said 24 hours’ notice was given before the tents were removed and the council was “dependent on people leaving notes on the tent to tell us who they belong to”.
The council has previously called for the 500-bed quarantine Pinkenba facility to be used for crisis housing.
The state government previously committed $10 million to modify the federal government facility for housing, however Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in March it would be kept for defence use and for natural disasters and pandemics.
Brisbane City Council hold the second Homeless Connect event this year at the RNA Showgrounds on November 3 to provide essential services such as medical, hairdressing, housing and employment services.
– With Samantha Heathwood
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