England and Wales to decriminalise rough sleepingA 200-year-old law that criminalises rough sleeping in England and Wales is to be scrapped, a move campaigners described as “a landmark moment that will change lives”. The Vagrancy Act of 1824 – introduced to deal with rising homelessness – gave police forces the power to fine or imprison people for sleeping rough. Campaigners have repeatedly called for the law to be repealed in England and Wales, too. This week, the UK government said that it would be in the forthcoming crime and policing bill. “This is a landmark moment that will change lives and prevent thousands of people from being pushed into the shadows, away from safety.