The new law came into effect last year

The research by Shelter Scotland said 85% of local authorities did not think they had enough temporary housing to cope with demand.

Some 60% of councils said they would have to use B&Bs to meet the requirements of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001.

However, the Scottish Executive said the study was out of date and councils maintain the situation is being brought under control.

Shelter's research focused on how councils had prepared for the introduction of the act, which gave all single homeless people the right to temporary housing from the end of September last year.

'Unsuitable housing'

The charity's survey of Scotland's 32 local authorities was completed before the implementation of the act.

Gavin Corbett, of Shelter Scotland, said: "It is totally unacceptable that homeless people are being placed in unsuitable housing.

"Although the Scottish Executive has provided some money for new temporary accommodation it has not been enough.

If B&Bs weren't there as a safety net, these additional applicants would in fact be homeless Cosla spokesman

"Ironically, these shortfalls will allow the most expensive form of temporary accommodation - B&Bs - to flourish. This is economic madness."

The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (Cosla), which represents most councils, said an increasing use of temporary housing was inevitable.

A spokesman said: "In many respects Shelter, as well as the rest of the housing lobby, must accept their share of responsibility for this.

"We cannot ask for additional statutory rights, get them and then stand back and blame the executive when there's an increased uptake of temporary accommodation.

"If B&Bs weren't there as a safety net, these additional applicants would in fact be homeless - so in some ways this is a perverse success."

New funding

Cosla said the rise in the use of B&Bs was "disappointing" but said the situation was being brought under control.

The Scottish Executive said the research did not take account of new funding.

A spokeswoman said: "The study pre-dates the �127m over three years we committed in September 2002 to tackling homelessness."

Housing Minister Margaret Curran said the executive had a fundamental strategy in place to combat homelessness.

"When you creates rights for people, they make use of those rights and that is why we have the increase in figures that we do.

"We have issued guidelines to reduce the number of families in bed and breakfast units and of course we want to eliminate it in the longer term."

B&Bs provide a safety net for those waiting on accomodation

She added: "The way to solve homelessness is to get down to the fundamental causes which is not just about housing but other social problems."

However Mary Scanlon, communities spokeswoman for the Scottish Conservative Party, hit out at the minister's claims that the executive was tackling Scotland's homelessness problem.

She also said that the number of households living in temporary accommodation had gone up by 147% since the Tories were last in power.

Ms Scanlon added: "The social justice annual report of 1999 stated that one of the primary aims of the Scottish government was to reduce the number of households, particularly those with children, living in temporary accommodation.