But the move was carried by 294 to 85, Government majority 209.MPs also put back into the Bill a new offence of incitement to religious hatred and Beverley Hughes, the Home Office minister, assured MPs that the Attorney General would have to give his consent before a prosecution could proceed. But she came under attack from all sides after disclosing that the Attorney General would issue guidance as to what would be considered “legitimate expression of religious belief”.But despite the biggest revolt of the evening, by 27 Labour backbenchers, the Lords defeat was reversed by 307 votes to 236, Government majority 71.. Tony Blair’s claims to be tackling homelessness were undermined yesterday when official figures showed that the number of families living in bed-and-breakfast hotels had soared yet again. The figures also showed that the total number of people described as “homeless and in need” had risen by 11 per cent, from 102,000 in 1997 to 114,000 in 2001.A week ago the Prime Minister hailed a big cut in the number of people sleeping rough on the streets, to just 532 nationwide.Lord Falconer of Thoroton, the Housing minister, conceded that the large rise in figures on B&B and other homeless cases was unacceptable. “I am very concerned with the upward trends highlighted in the latest homelessness statistics. Following the success in substantially reducing the number of people sleeping rough the Government is determined to deal with the wider issue of homelessness,” he said.Lord Falconer said the figures proved that the Government was right to set up its new B&B Unit on 1 October and to create a Homelessness Directorate to oversee strategy.He said reasons for the rise in homelessness were varied, including the shortage of social housing and poor condition of stock, both the result of years of under-investment. The increase in housing investment, more than double the 1997 level, should help to overcome these problems, he said.”To better focus Government I have set up a Homelessness Directorate.

This will bring together and invigorate existing work to help the homeless, as well as prevent and discover the underlying causes of homelessness.”Lord Falconer stressed that proposed homelessness legislation, now before Parliament, would strengthen the safety net for homeless households and place a new duty on local authorities to take a strategic approach to tackling and preventing homelessness.Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, the shadow Housing minister, said that Labour could not bury the bad news that homelessness had rocketed since it came to power “Things have got worse, not better, in the past four years Labour has failed to publish its own homelessness strategy. This is yet another indication that Stephen Byers and his department urgently need to get a grip.”The figures came as the Government’s Rough Sleepers Unit was forced again to deny claims that it had tried to “fiddle” the statistics on the number of people sleeping on the streets. Philip Burke, chairman of the Simon Community, said that “many, many people” were put in bed-and-breakfast accommodation so that they would not show up on the census.. Tory MEPs ditched their leader, Edward McMillan-Scott, last night when a left-right alliance took charge of the party in the European Parliament.

Mr McMillan-Scott led the party from 1997 and fought hard to maintain a semblance of unity in a party split between pro-Europeans and a smaller but vocal group of hardline sceptics.Yesterday’s narrow vote of 19-17 in favour of Mr Evans reflected an alliance among his opponents on both wings of the party and growing disenchantment over the stalemate. It came on the eve of a visit to Brussels by Iain Duncan Smith, the party leader, who will meet fellow leaders from centre-right parties amid growing controversy over the role of Tory MEPs within their ranks.Mr Duncan Smith wants the Conservatives to be able to advance distinctive policies within the umbrella group of centre-right MEPS, the European People’s Party/European Democrats. As this is likely to be rejected, the Tories may leave the bloc, which has political control of the parliament.. Historic moves to grant extra powers to Commons select committees and guarantee their freedom from the party whips are being devised by MPs and the Government. They will also be given a much wider role in scrutinising legislation before and after its passage through the Commons.The steps follow the dispute earlier this year over bungled attempts by Labour whips to remove two outspoken Labour MPs as chairmen of select committees.