‘They’ve taken all my stuff’: councils across Australia threaten homeless people with fines and confiscation of belongings | Housing
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/may/24/theyve-taken-all-my-stuff-councils-across-australia-threaten-homeless-people-with-fines-and-confiscation-of-belongings
26 Comments
It’s illegal to not have money. They’ll fine you for it.
“The law, in its majestic equality, forbids rich and poor alike to sleep under bridges, to beg in the streets, and to steal their bread.”
We should amend it. It’s permitted for both the poor and the rich to buy political influence.
Surprised they aren’t jailing them for being homeless yet
Tip No. 1 for being homeless – Be as un-noticable as practical. You’ve got more chance of being left alone.
What’s next.
Put the homeless in prison for vagrancy as free labour like the Americans?
I don’t understand why this isn’t theft? Can’t just take someone’s belongings.
Such ‘cruel, callous and corrupt’ policies these councils are using. It be nice for them to try it out some time, sleeping rough for a night or two and maybe ‘develop a little empathy’.
What do you want them to do? Just a free for all dumping feast?
Same people that support this will be against any policy that makes housing more affordable.
The way we treat homeless people in Australia is a stain on our country. This should be the governments shame (every level of government no matter which “side” you’re on) to have its people sleeping rough or living on the streets.
This is nothing but a failure on our government and on our broken system.
We are sold this false story time and time again that only junkies are homeless but I can imagine most people don’t start out that way and actually turn to drugs when living on the streets to numb the pain and loneliness they’re going through
What we are lacking is empathy and respect for people, for our neighbours, for strangers, for people who we judge without knowing their story.
Homelessness could happen to any one of us at any time, we should never assume we are better than those in a tough spot in life, because who knows when it could be our turn
To summarise, councils and anyone enforcing this can eat a bag of dicks
“Our property developer donors don’t like seeing this riff raff. Go be poor somewhere else, degenerate!”
Australian Councils.
Here on Gold Coast homeless put up tents outside Australia Fair, council gave them notice to vacate. One week later garage trucks arrived and threw all of the belongings of the homeless into garage truck due to “public health risks.”
No compassion for basic human rights. Shameful.
Where is the empathy. Most of these people have been put into this situation due to the government driven cost of living and housing shortage.
…because the best time to kick someone is when they are down!
FFS, what is wrong with people.
Theft is theft. Regardless of whether someone has a home or not.
Even if you use the argument that it’s left lying around, it’s possessions and not an empty macca’s wrapping. If I find a bag, or something else that is clearly someone’s belingings on the street, I’m handing it in to the police if I don’t think someone is coming back for it. To keep it for myself is still theft. To make a decision to throw it out is no different – you’re either deciding is yours and you have the right to throw it out, or you’re intentionally depriving someone else of their belongings, which is not really any different.
Reason number 394 on why I know society is broken and why all humans need to die off.
We aren’t capable of being civil and ethical. We need to be eradicated.
Instead of fixing the root causes of systemic fuckery we’re using the system to fuck with those most affected by systemic fuckery.
This is a disgrace. What a pretend first world nation we are. This is jackboot stormtrooper nonsense.
As terrible as this is, it’s worth stepping back and asking why this is happening if we want to fix it.
In most cases, councils are stuck in a difficult place between having an obligation to the welfare of rough sleepers and to the safety and cleanliness of their communities and nearby residents. While certainly not applying to everyone, a meaningful portion of rough sleepers often bring challenges with addiction, mental illness, and antisocial behaviour, which has severely negative impacts in the areas where they camp.
At the same time, the interventions around housing, mental health and drug treatment, and, if necessary, move-on-into-care powers that would actually fix this problem properly sit with other levels of government. Council confiscation is largely a policy borne out of councils taking the option available to them even when it is a flawed one.
This isn’t to say councils shouldn’t escape scrutiny, but if we don’t demand more comprehensive support from all levels of government to fix the problem, the problems will be left to councils to sort using the powers they have, and this will continue to happen.
Personally, I’d love to see media articles like this focusing less on the sensational news about confiscations and more on the lack of systemic support that leads to it.
Australia is a class based society. The more property and $$$ you have, the more “rights” you can purchase.
Gee wouldn’t it be lovely to have a sovereign wealth fund that could help those in need of housing. Wonder where we could get it from?
People in the most desperate situation and they’re given a fine. Jeez, thanks a lot society.
Covid showed that housing homeless people is an option, they’re choosing this instead.
Junkies and the very mentally ill are mentioned every time homeless comes up as a topic, but now with the current rental crisis many homeless are working poor. Or are single parents or families or disabled or aged.
If you weren’t able to buy or get into public housing and you don’t have family to stay with you end up in your car or in a tent.
Emergency housing is a week in a motel now under QLD LNP, short and long term community housing is full, there are no homeless shelters for families.
Let’s not pretend that it’s only those who reject help because they are addicts or mentally ill who are homeless, far too many vulnerable Australian Citizens including children are desperate need of housing and support but get nothing but a spot on a very long public housing waiting list.
Yeah because as sad as it is to have people that are homeless, the majority of them camp out in toilet blocks and destroy the place. There wouls be alot more sympathy if they didnt cost us tens of thousands of dollars annually in vandalism. Unfortunately there are a few that just end up in this shitty situation, but obviously they are the ones the media uses to gain appeal.
Successive Australian governments are waging a war on the poor.
“How do we get rid of homelessness? I know, steal their shit!”