Welsh police trying to trace next of kin of Limerick man who died on the streets
Richard 'Paddy' O'Brien, 56, who slept rough in Cardiff. Picture: WalesOnline/Media Wales
A Limerick man who slammed the recently- sacked British home secretary Suella Braverman’s claim that homelessness was “a lifestyle choice” died on a Cardiff Burger King doorstep weeks later.
Richard O’Brien, 56, had been homeless in Britain and had publicly criticsed Ms Braverman’s comments last month, saying that most people who were homeless had nowhere to go so they “have to be on this pavement”.
He was found dead on November 27 in Cardiff, after he became unwell during the night, and Welsh police are currently trying to trace his next of kin.
Weeks earlier, he publicly disagreed with the sacked home secretary, telling WalesOnline that being homeless was not a lifestyle choice.
“I wouldn’t agree with that [Ms Braverman’s comments]. 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,” he said.
“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."
Messages for Mr O’Brien, who was described as “a really nice man” who “would make you giggle” have now been left on an electric box near the doorway where he died.
Katie Dalton, director of Cymorth Cymru, the representative body for providers of homelessness, housing and support services in Wales, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, about how Mr O’Brien “seemed like a really lovely man”.
She posted: “I recently took him to hospital after seeing him struggling to walk.
“He told me (with a wry smile) he had fallen the night before, while dancing in the rain.
“We got talking about where he was from [Co Limerick] and his eyes lit up when he discovered I have loads of family there.”
Before his death, Mr O’Brien told WalesOnline he had been homeless on and off for 30 years, first in Bristol, then London, then Cardiff.
Mr O’Brien said that he did not sleep in a tent out of fear that someone would set it on fire.
Every evening, he searched for cardboard to sleep on with blankets and a sleeping bag.
South Wales Police confirmed a man had died after an ambulance was called to Queen St in the early hours of November 27.
They said there were "no suspicious circumstances" and enquiries were being made to trace next of kin.
Mr O’Brien was the third homeless person to die in the Welsh capital this year, according to the British .
Public outrage erupted last month after Ms Braverman said she wanted to stop "the nuisance and distress" of people who were homeless pitching tents in public spaces as Britain defended proposed legislation to restrict charities from providing homeless people with tents.
"We cannot allow our streets to be taken over by rows of tents occupied by people, many of them from abroad, living on the streets as a lifestyle choice," Ms Braverman wrote on social media.
"We cannot allow our streets to be taken over by rows of tents occupied by people, many of them from abroad, living on the streets as a lifestyle choice."
Una Byrne, head of advocacy and communications with Novas, an organisation which helps people who are homeless in Limerick and an approved housing body, sent condolences to Mr O’Brien’s family.
“It's particularly tragic for the family when somebody is experiencing something like homelessness and particularly when they're abroad and that happens. Our sincerest condolences to them.”
She said that Ms Braverman’s comments “really underscored a true lack of understanding of the complexities of homelessness”.
She added: “So often it's rooted in systematic poverty and disadvantage that people experience from a really young age."
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