MP hits out at ‘bedroom tax’
10:23am Saturday 2nd March 2013 in News
MP Yasmin Qureshi has hit out at the impending “bedroom tax” during a Commons debate.
From April, the Government will cut housing benefit for people with a spare room if they live in social housing.
The move comes despite social landlords warning they do not have enough onebedroom housing stock to move people to suitable accommodation. Ms Qureshi, MP for Bolton South East, claims the measure will cost an estimated 660,000 people an average of £728 per year and that disabled people, parents of serving members of the armed forces and 140,000 working households are likely to be most affected.
An opposition debate was tabled recently in a bid to derail the plans.
Ms Qureshi told the Commons: “Most of the spare bedrooms are needed by the people who live in those homes.
“Some of the constituents who have spoken to me are single parents whose children may not live with them for seven days a week, but stay with them for two or three days, depending on the arrangements made by the court.
“People in these circumstances will be severely affected by these provisions”.
