Glasgow Spends £7.7M on Hotels for Homeless Crisis

Glasgow City Council has spent nearly £8 million in just three months to house homeless residents in hotels and bed and breakfast accommodation, underscoring the growing strain on Scotland’s social safety net and raising questions about how taxpayer money is being used to address persistent housing failures.

Freedom of Information data shows Glasgow City Council spent £7.74 million on hotel and B&B placements for homeless individuals between January and March this year. A significant portion of this funding went to hotel rooms and bed and breakfast properties as the city struggled to find suitable long-term housing solutions.

Critics argue that pouring such vast sums into short-term accommodation reflects years of poor planning and an overreliance on temporary fixes rather than sustainable policies that could prevent homelessness in the first place. While officials insist that the spending was necessary to ensure no one was left without a roof, others have called it a symptom of broader mismanagement that ultimately fails both vulnerable individuals and the taxpayers footing the bill.

The escalating costs come at a time when public finances are already under intense pressure. Many residents question whether the resources devoted to emergency hotels could have been better spent expanding affordable housing stock or supporting initiatives to tackle addiction and mental health challenges that often underpin repeat homelessness.

A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council defended the expenditure, stating it was “vital to protect people at risk.” However, charities and community organisations have repeatedly warned that reliance on costly hotels only masks the deeper crisis. Without targeted investment in permanent housing and more rigorous efforts to reduce poverty, the cycle is likely to continue.

There is also concern that such spending sets an unsustainable precedent for other councils across the United Kingdom, especially as demands on welfare systems increase and public expectations for accountability grow. If local authorities remain dependent on temporary accommodation providers, they risk draining budgets without ever solving the root causes of homelessness.

Glasgow’s situation highlights a hard reality: emergency measures, however well-intentioned, can only serve as a stopgap. Long-term, responsible policymaking, not expensive short-term contracts, will ultimately determine whether councils can deliver results that respect both vulnerable citizens and the taxpayers who support them.