A millionaire has been slammed by the public after turning wheelie bins into controversial sleep pods for the homeless.
As 65-year-old tech tycoon Peter Dawe suggested, his idea could save thousands of rough sleepers from being exposed to abuse and unforgiving weather conditions while sleeping the nights on the street.
“I saw on the telly rough sleepers complaining they had been kicked and p***ed upon. Lying on the street in a sleeping bag, you are very vulnerable,” Mr. Dawe explained.
And so, the tech mogul figured out that homeless people could feel safer if they were enclosed in a sleep pod consisting of two wheelie bins that they could easily move around wherever they go.
“I was actually quite delighted. It was definitely comfier than sleeping on the ground in a tent. It was totally draught proof, in fact it’s storm proof. It’s really cosy, comfortable and dry,” the millionaire added.
To prove his point, he also lied down in one of the pods for 20 minutes himself.
“It is a Marmite design. Some people think it’s genius, others are actually horrified. It’s denigrating to be rough sleeping – end of story,” Dawe admitted.
“I think it is more comfortable and more secure sleeping in a sleep pod, rather than being huddled in a wet sleeping bag being kicked.”
After the controversial invention went viral, some people loved it while others called it “horrible” and “demeaning.”
“This is possibly one of the worst and most demeaning inventions I’ve ever seen. Bear in mind that you could buy a cheap tent for that price and it might actually work to sleep in,” someone wrote.
“Imagine a person who’s obviously struggling and you’re gonna put them in a freakin trash bin to try and make them feel and sleep better,” another one said.
Despite the backlash, the millionaire is already looking for test subjects to give his invention a try.
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Replaced!