“This seems to be a reward for failure. The owners of these hostels have made money out of them at the expense of the public purse.”
She added: “What are needed are permanent council social rented homes. Schemes like this do not even paper over the cracks.”
The town hall has said that the leases will help meet record demand for temporary housing for homeless people.
The number of approaches to the council from homeless people seeking help rose 39 per cent in 2018/19 when compared to the previous year, and town hall expenditure on temporary accommodation jumped from £7.38m in 2017 to £10.13m two years later.