ICESCR concluding observations 2025, paragraph 47
Plain English recommendation
Government should:
(a) Do everything possible to ensure the availability of affordable and social housing by simplifying planning regulations, prioritising funding for new construction and improving poor quality housing. These measures should ensure this type of housing is accessible to disadvantaged groups, in particular disabled people, older people, migrants, ethnic minorities and low-and middle-income households, with a focus on single mothers;
(b) Review property tax rates in order to increase the number of houses sold or used for longer-term rentals. Consider the economic and social impacts of real estate investment trusts whose profits and capital gains are excluded from taxation;
(c) Ensure the best possible protections for tenants, including by changing section 21 of the Housing Act 1988. Ensure that evictions, when unavoidable, follow proper process, involve consultation with people affected, consider other options, allow for appeal and result in proper compensation or other housing options;
(d) Tackle the root causes of homelessness by ensuring local authorities have the resources they need to address homelessness. Prioritise long-term solutions that fulfil a range of other rights in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). Ensure safe and adequate living conditions in temporary accommodation. This should be done thorough new regulations and through not punishing people who are rough sleeping;
(e) Ensure adequate housing for people with intellectual disabilities, and allow those in inpatient units to leave to avoid longer periods spent in institutional settings;
(f) Ensure adequate and culturally appropriate accommodation and stopping sites for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities. This should include access to water, sanitation and electricity in coordination with local authorities. Government should review and remove laws or policies that undermine their traditional ways of life. For example, section 83 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, which criminalises unauthorised encampments in England and Wales, and the Unauthorised Encampments (Northern Ireland) Order 2005;
(g) Ensure safe, healthy and adequate living conditions for migrants and asylum-seekers in temporary and longer term accommodation. Hotel accommodation should not be used for children who are alone. Government should also improve oversight and enforcement mechanisms to prevent exploitation and discrimination by landlords, including for refugees;
(h) Do more to prevent and stop intimidation by paramilitary groups against ethnic minorities and migrants in Northern Ireland to ensure they have adequate housing and to prevent their segregation. Data should be collected on acts that result in segregation, and these acts should be quickly and properly investigated.
Original UN recommendation
Recalling its previous recommendation, the Committee urges the State Party, along with the devolved governments of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales:
(a) To take all measures necessary to ensure the availability of affordable and social housing units by streamlining planning regulations, prioritizing funding for new construction, rehabilitating substandard housing and ensuring accessibility for disadvantaged groups, in particular persons with disabilities, older persons, migrants, ethnic minorities and low- and middle-income households, with a focus on single mothers;
(b) To review property tax rates with a view to increasing the supply of housing units for sale or long-term rental and carry out an assessment of the economic and social impacts of the complete exemption from tax on profits and capital gains by real estate investment trusts;
(c) To ensure the greatest possible security of tenure to tenants, including by amending section 21 of the Housing Act 1988, and guarantee that evictions, when unavoidable, comply with due process, involve consultation with the affected persons, consider alternatives, allow for appeal and result in adequate compensation or adequate alternative housing;
(d) To address the root causes of homelessness by ensuring adequate resources for local authorities, prioritizing long-term solutions that enable the exercise of other Covenant rights, guaranteeing safe and adequate living conditions in temporary accommodation, including through a comprehensive regulatory framework, and ending the punitive approach towards rough sleeping;
(e) To ensure access to adequate housing for individuals with intellectual disabilities, enabling those residing in inpatient units to be discharged and preventing their institutionalization;
(f) To ensure adequate, culturally appropriate accommodation and stopping sites for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities, including access to water, sanitation and electricity, in coordination with local authorities and review and repeal laws or policies that undermine their traditional ways of life, such as section 83 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, which criminalizes unauthorized encampments in England and Wales, and the Unauthorized Encampments (Northern Ireland) Order 2005;
(g) To ensure safe, healthy and adequate living conditions for migrants and asylum-seekers in temporary and dispersed accommodation, including, in particular, by ending the use of hotel accommodation for unaccompanied children and by improving oversight and enforcement mechanisms to prevent exploitation and discrimination by landlords in access to housing, including for refugees;
(h) To strengthen measures to prevent and combat intimidation by paramilitary groups against ethnic minorities and migrants in Northern Ireland in order to ensure their access to adequate housing and to prevent de facto segregation, to collect data on such acts and to ensure that they are promptly and effectively investigated.
Date of UN examination
12/03/2025
Original UN document
Download the original ICESCR concluding observations 2025 on the UN website.
Last updated on 21/08/2025