Housing Benefit – Parliamentary Written Answer

Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to his Department's impact assessment entitled Under-occupation of social housing, whether the application of private rented sector size criteria to the social rented sector will include the criterion that an individual under 35 years should live in a property with shared facilities; what discussions he has had on the extension of this aspect of private rented sector size criteria to the social rented sector; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Webb: The local housing allowance size criteria will be applied to the social rented sector in establishing under-occupancy. The shared accommodation rate is not part of the size criteria and so will not apply to the under-occupation measure for claimants in the social rented sector.