David
Cameron is to the Bedroom Tax (known officially as the Social Sector Size
Criterion) what Margaret Thatcher was to the Poll Tax (known officially as the
Community Charge).
The
unfair Bedroom Tax hits about 500,000 households in total, including more than
46,000 families in Yorkshire and Humberside and nearly 6000 in Sheffield. Two
thirds of the households affected include a person with a disability. The tax
also hits 60,000 carers.
The
Bedroom Tax works by restricting housing benefit to allow for one bedroom for
each person or couple living as part of the household. The cut is a fixed
percentage of the Housing Benefit eligible rent. This is 14% for one extra
bedroom and 25% for two or more extra bedrooms.
Let
us be clear. This tax has nothing to do with ‘persuading people to move to a
smaller property to enable a bigger family to move in”. Many social
housing providers already had good, sensitive transfer schemes which have been
under-mined by this Tax. The government actually assumed that the vast majority
of affected households would be unable to move to a smaller home, which is why
it was predicted to cost less.
As
predicted, for the vast majority of those affected, there is nowhere smaller to
which to move. Thus, the tax hits vulnerable people through no fault of their
own. The average family is trapped and losing over £700 a year.
The
government’s own independent evaluation[1]
of the policy recently reported that just 4.5 per cent of affected tenants were
able to move to smaller accommodation within the social sector. Ludicrously,
most of those who were able to find smaller accommodation in the private sector
had to pay higher rents, which is why the housing benefit bill has increased.
The
Chief Executive of the National Housing Federation has described the policy as
“an unfair, ill-planned disaster that is hurting our poorest families.”[2]
The cut in housing benefit has been so significant – the difference between
keeping the head above water and drowning – that 60 per cent of affected
tenants were in arrears after just 6 months. Chasing these arrears is costing a
fortune; and, now, social landlords are being blamed because arrears have
increased. There is widespread concern that those who are paying are
making cuts to other household essentials or incurring other debts in order to
pay the rent.
But,
David Cameron could not have done this on his own. Without Nick Clegg and the
Liberal Democrats there would be no Bedroom Tax. Each time they’ve had a chance
to make a difference, they’ve chosen to keep the Bedroom Tax in place.[3]
No excuses, Mr Clegg.
[2]
www.housing.org.uk/media/press-releases/more-than-half-of-families-hit-by-bedroom-tax-pushed-into-debt
[3] The Liberal Democrats voted for the legislation that
created the Bedroom Tax, and even voted against amendments tabled by Labour
that would have exempted people with disabilities whose homes had been
specially adapted for them, or who could not find alternative accommodation
where support services and suitable employment was locally available.
On 13 November 2013 Labour forced a vote in the House
of Commons on a motion to abolish the Bedroom Tax. This was opposed by the
Liberal Democrat front bench although Andrew George and Tim Farron rebelled to
vote with Labour.
On 12 February 2014, MP Ian Lavery had a Ten Minute
Rule Bill to abolish the bedroom tax and reform housing benefit. Ian Lavery
said that those “who voted in favour of introducing this dreaded bedroom tax
may have underestimated the human suffering that it would cause”. The Lib Dems
had the chance to support this and vote with Labour, but they failed to do so.
