The number of homeless people in Northern Ireland has soared in the past year, it emerged today.
Figures released by the UK Housing Executive revealed that more than 14,000 households were registered as homeless in the North, the highest rate in the UK.
This was an increase of around 1,000 on the previous year. Launching the Executive's 31st annual report, the Chairman Mr Sid McDowell pledged the organisation would do everything in its power to drive down the figures.
An overhaul of the system is currently taking place and next month the chairman and Social Development Minister Nigel Dodds will launch a new Homelessness Strategy.
Increasing levels of sectarianism has meant that housing, particularly in Belfast and Derry is more segregated than ever.
This has contributed to the problems of providing decent housing, the chairman said.
"My guess is that in terms of segregation and intimidation this has probably contributed between 10 and 15 per cent to the homeless figure."
But he denied that the Housing Executive had failed to tackle the problem of segregation, arguing that it was doing everything it could to improve community relations.
According to figures published by Focus Ireland yesterday, it is estimated housing waiting lists in the Republic shot up by 35 per cent between 1999 and 2001 from 39,000 to 54,000, which represents about 140,000 men, women and children.
The group says there are 6,000 homeless people in Ireland at any given time.
PA