On the banks of a trendy Paris canal, a group of campaigners has pitched 100 bright red tents and is asking locals to spend a freezing night sleeping rough, to highlight the city's homeless problem.

Since Saturday, some 200 people have signed up, taking turns in groups of a few dozen to sing songs, share hot drinks – and shiver through the small hours – along with around 50 homeless people sheltering in the camp.

Paris' homeless problem was thrust into public view last winter after the charity Medecins du Monde handed out 400 tents to the homeless, prompting clusters of tent camps to spring up along the city's canals and boulevards.

City hall had many of them evacuated last summer after residents complained of noise problems and petty crime.

Critics have accused the authorities of trying to push the problem out of sight, although the city insists it is acting out of concern and would rather see the homeless in shelters than ad-hoc camps.

One of the people who spent a night in a tent said: "We need to stop bandaging up the problem – offering people a soup during the day, and a kennel at night."

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