Homeless man who criticised Suella Braverman’s ‘lifestyle choice’ comment dies on the street

A homeless man has died just weeks after criticising the former home secretary’s claim that people living on the streets had made a “lifestyle choice”.

Richard O’Brien died on 27 November after becoming unwell while sleeping in a doorway on one of Cardiff city centre’s main shopping streets.

South Wales Police confirmed his death, saying there were no suspicious circumstances and that inquiries were being made to trace Mr O’Brien’s next of kin.

Last month Mr O’Brien, who was known to his friends as Paddy or Limerick because of his Irish roots, spoke to Wales Online after Suella Braverman’s controversial comments, said to be part of the reason why she was subsequently sacked in a recent government reshuffle.

“I wouldn’t agree with that,” he told the outlet. I’m not saying people don’t have places - some people do, and whether they want to choose to be on the pavement, that’s up to them.

“But the fact is, there are people out here who haven’t got anywhere - and can’t get anywhere, so they have no choice, they have to be on this pavement.”

Mr O’Brien, 56, was one of about 40 people known to be sleeping rough on the streets of Cardiff, according to the city council.

He was the third homeless person to die in the Welsh capital this year as temperatures dip going into winter.

A friend of Mr O’Brien’s said that he drank but didn’t use drugs, describing him as a well-known character on the streets who liked to dance and share his beverages.

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Tributes, written on cardboard, were left near the Burger King on Queen Street, where Mr O’Briam was said to have become unwell

There is no national figure for the number of people who are homeless across the UK because each nation records the data differently and many people on the streets do not show up in official statistics.

Census 2021 data published last week said there were an estimated 13,955 people at hostels and temporary shelters.

But this was “only a small proportion of all people experiencing homelessness, and therefore much lower than other official estimates for this group”.

Two other men believed to have been homeless - in Manchester and Nottingham - died over the weekend of 1 December as temperatures plunged below zero across swathes of the UK.

Matt Downie, chief executive of homeless charity Crisis, urged people living on the streets to seek help - particularly during the cold winter months  - and called on the government to build more social housing to end rough sleeping for good.

“No one should have to spend their last moments alone on the streets, in freezing conditions and without the protection of a secure home,” he told The Independent.

“Rough sleeping is incredibly dangerous at any time of the year, but as these tragic incidents show, in the winter months it is deadly.”

“Striking up a conversation with someone can also mean you are able to get their permission to contact Streetlink on their behalf, which will connect them to homelessness services in their local area.”

He added: “Although it’s absolutely right that emergency winter night accommodation is available during brutally cold weather, this is only a temporary measure, when what we really need is long-term solutions such as building the 90,000 social homes we need annually and providing specialist services.

“Until then, Crisis will continue to be there for anyone who needs us, including supporting nearly 600 people in London who would otherwise be sleeping rough over Christmas, to leave homelessness behind for good.”