The government has denied it is ending funding to help rough sleepers in England
stay off the streets amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Councils were given £3.2m in March to provide emergency shelter for homeless people,
with many housed in hotels.
The Manchester Evening News said a leaked report showed ministers
"quietly pulled the plug on the programme".
The government said it was "wrong" to suggest it had ended funding to keep rough
sleepers off the street.
Instead, councils have been given £3.2bn to help with the additional costs of the pandemic,
a spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) said.
"It is simply wrong and misleading to suggest that we have stopped funding to keep rough
sleepers off the street," the spokesperson said.
"We gave councils an initial payment of £3.2m at the start of the pandemic so they could
take immediate action and help rough sleepers off the street.
"We have since given councils a further £3.2bn to deal with the immediate pressures
they are facing, including supporting rough sleepers."
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