Government Loses Supreme Court Fight Over Bedroom Tax

The supreme court has ruled against the UK government’s attempts to force the bedroom tax on 155 partners of people with severe disabilities, in a decision that will hamper ministerial attempts to water down human rights legislation. A unanimous judgment delivered by the court’s president, Lady Hale, ruled that applying a 14% housing benefit reduction to a man, referred only as RR, was a breach of his right to home under the Human Rights Act. RR’s partner is severely disabled so “it is accepted” that the couple need an extra bedroom for her medical equipment, Hale said. Read more on the Guardian website.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/nov/13/uk-government-loses-supreme-court-fight-over-bedroom-tax

European Court Lands Blow On The ‘Bedroom Tax’

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has landed a major blow against the ‘Bedroom Tax’ and how housing benefit is administered. Judges have ruled that the ‘reform’ discriminated against a domestic-violence victim who was forced to pay extra for her panic room. The case concerned the effect of the ‘bedroom tax’ policy on women living in ‘Sanctuary Scheme’ homes – properties specially adapted to enable women and children at serious risk of domestic violence to live safely in their own homes. Read more on 24housing.

https://www.24housing.co.uk/news/european-court-lands-blow-on-the-bedroom-tax/

Homeless Denied Social Housing For Being Too Poor

Homeless people are being denied access to affordable housing because social landlords are routinely excluding prospective tenants who are deemed too poor or vulnerable to pay the rent. Research by the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) found that “screening out” of homeless applicants nominated for newly available lets was widespread, as housing associations and local authorities increasingly ration their shrinking stocks of social homes. In many cases nominees were refused a home because of the likelihood they would accrue major rent arrears after moving on to universal credit, because of the probability they would be hit by the bedroom tax or because the benefit cap had made them a financial risk. Read more on the Guardian website.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/sep/17/homeless-denied-housing-over-fears-they-are-too-poor-study-says

Bedroom Tax Applies Even When Children Must Share Very Small Rooms

A court ruling has prompted the government to remind councils that the bedroom tax applies even when children are forced to share very small rooms. In an information bulletin issued to council housing benefit staff, the DWP highlighted town halls of their legal duty to consider a Court of Appeal judgement handed down on 24 June. The DWP had appealed an Upper Tribunal ruling in favour of Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council and mum-of-two Rachel Hockley concerning the Removal of the Spare Room Subsidy (RSRS) – more commonly referred to as the bedroom tax. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/bedroom-tax-applies-even-when-children-must-share-very-small-rooms-councils-warned-62988?utm_source=Housing60&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article_link&utm_campaign=H60

Homes Lost Because Of The Benefits Cap And 'Bedroom Tax'

More than 60 households in Coventry and Warwickshire have been forced out of their homes by the benefits cap and so-called 'bedroom tax'. The figure was revealed in new government data showing the number of people who started a new tenancy in social housing in 2017/18. All households who start a new tenancy in social housing are asked why they left their previous flat or house. In Coventry alone, 25 new tenants blamed either the benefits cap, the bedroom tax, or a combination of both for their being forced to move. Fourteen of those said the bedroom tax was solely to blame. Read more on Coventry Live.

https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/bedroom-tax-benefits-cap-15482559

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing – Parliamentary Written Answer

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to review the implementation of the removal of the spare room subsidy.
Caroline Dinenage: We need to keep the system simple for both claimants and landlords. The Government therefore has no plans to review the removal of the spare room subsidy so that local authorities are required to measure bedrooms.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing – Parliamentary Written Answer

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households with a disabled family member are subject to the removal of the spare room subsidy.

Caroline Dinenage: As of May 2017, there were 414 thousand households in Great Britain who had a deduction made from their Housing Benefit due to the removal of the spare room subsidy. Of these, there were 278 thousand where the claimant or partner was receiving Disability Living Allowance (DLA) or Personal Independence Payment (PIP)or Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).

Universal Credit: Pensioners – Parliamentary Written Answer

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how pensioners in receipt of universal credit in mixed-couple households where one partner is over pensionable age and the other is below will be affected by the under-occupation penalty.

Damian Hinds: All mixed aged couples who under-occupy social housing, are subject to the policy to remove the spare room subsidy, if one partner is in receipt of Universal Credit. This is because working age claimants are better placed to meet a rent shortfall through taking up employment or increasing their working hours; and over the long term, this measure helps ensure that people move to more suitably sized accommodation before both members of a couple reach state pension age.

Government Defeated In Bedroom Tax Case

A couple who had their housing benefit reduced because they were unable to share a bedroom due to a severe disability have defeated the government in court for the second time. In a decision passed down by the Upper Tribunal, the court ruled Jayson and Jacqueline Carmichael should not have been subject to the bedroom tax. A Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) spokesperson said they would seek to appeal the decision. The couple successfully challenged the bedroom tax at the Supreme Court last year. The Supreme Court ruled the government had unlawfully discriminated against Ms Carmichael, who has spina bifida and is unable to share a bedroom with her husband and as a result had her housing benefit reduced. Read more on Inside Housing.

Social Rented Housing: Housing Benefit – Parliamentary Written Answer

Frank Field:  To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 19 January 2017 to Question 60098, what progress has been made on amending the regulations governing the under-occupancy penalty.

Caroline Nokes: The regulations in relation to two Supreme Court judgments concerning the removal of the spare room subsidy were laid on 2 March 2017 and will come into force on 1 April 2017. From this date an additional bedroom will be allowed, subject to certain criteria, where a disabled child or adult non-dependant requires a non-resident overnight carer (or team of carers); or where a couple one of whom (or both) are disabled and those disabilities prevent them from sharing a bedroom.

Social Rented Housing: Housing Benefit – Parliamentary Written Answer

Owen Smith:  To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he expects to announce what changes are required to comply with the terms of the Supreme Court ruling of November 2016 on the under-occupancy penalty.

Caroline Nokes: The Department is taking action to make changes to the regulations in order to comply with the terms of the judgment. The Social Security Advisory Committee and Local Authority Associations are being consulted about the changes in the usual way. The Department will also be issuing guidance to Local Authorities ready for when the changes are in place.

Charity Calls For Major Changes To Bedroom Tax

The Liverpool City Region Child Poverty and Life Chances Commission is calling on the government to initiate a major overhaul of the Bedroom Tax. The commission’s chairman, Frank Field, has set out evidence gained by the commission on the impact of the Bedroom Tax on poorer families with children:

·         112 families with children (83% of respondents to the commission’s survey) have cut back on their food budgets

·         96 families with children (71%) have cut back on essential household bills

·         67 families with children (49%) have resorted to payday loans

·         115 families with children (85%) are not currently looking to move home, due to a lack of suitable alternative accommodation into which they could move

Read more on 24housing.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing - Parliamentary Written Answer

Tracy Brabin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Oral Answer of 14 November 2016, Official Report, column 30, what the entire amount spent by his Department was on every stage of legal action defending the under-occupancy penalty; and how many hours, at what cost, officials spent working on that case.

Caroline Nokes: The total legal costs of the proceedings in the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court in respect of MA & Others, Re A and Rutherford, which concerned the underoccupancy penalty, as of the 9 November 2016, when the Supreme Court judgement was handed down, was £484,077.94. This figure includes the costs of the Supreme Court proceedings in respect of MA & Others, Re A and Rutherford, as of the 9 November 2016, which was £206,842.65.

Supreme Court’s Rulings Mean Bedroom Tax ‘Will Still Unfairly Hit Thousands’

The government’s “bedroom tax” discriminates unlawfully against some disabled people who need an extra bedroom because of their impairment, but not against others, the Supreme Court has ruled. The Supreme Court ruled that ministers’ decision to apply the bedroom tax to disabled people who need an extra bedroom for a clear medical reason, and to families who need an additional bedroom for a disabled child who requires overnight care, was unlawful discrimination. But other disabled people who need an extra bedroom for impairment-related reasons lost their battle against having to pay the bedroom tax, after the court ruled in favour of the DWP. Read more on the Disability News Service website.

Supreme Court Bedroom Tax Breakthrough

The country’s highest court, the Supreme Court, has ruled that the Government discriminated against a disabled woman and her husband and a severely disabled child who needs overnight care through the implementation of the ‘bedroom tax’. The Supreme Court judges dismissed the Government’s appeal in the case of CPAG’s clients Paul and Susan Rutherford who provide around-the-clock care for their disabled grandson and who have a third bedroom for overnight carers. CPAG acted for the Rutherfords who had successfully challenged the bedroom tax scheme in the Court of Appeal which held the policy unlawfully discriminates against children with disabilities who need overnight care. Read more on the CPAG website.

Scotland To Abolish 'Bedroom Tax'

The Scottish government are aiming to abolish the bedroom tax. A new piece of legislation, called the Social Security Bill, will be introduced by the government to combat the effects of welfare policy. Nicola Sturgeon also outlined she would be introducing a bill looking to end Child Poverty, something that has been widely welcomed. However, Scottish Conservatives wanted her to announce a commitment to ensure everyone in Scotland lives in a warm home. Read more on 24dash.

Changes To Housing Benefit Since 2010

After coming into power in 2010, as part of its deficit reduction programme the Coalition Government announced a package of welfare reforms aimed at reducing public expenditure. Housing Benefit was targeted as a key area for reform due to the increasing expenditure in this area (forecast to be £23.5 billion in 2016-17 - around 11% of total welfare expenditure).  This latest briefing paper details changes to Housing Benefit announced since 2010, including the under-occupation penalty ("bedroom tax"), limiting Housing Benefit paid to private tenants via changes to Local Housing Allowances and reducing social sector rents by 1% a year for four years from 2016-17.

Download the briefing from the Parliament website.

Bedroom Tax Failing To Free Up Larger Homes

The bedroom tax is failing to free up larger social homes in London, according to research by the G15 group of housing associations. Interim findings from the Real London Lives project reveal around a quarter of tenants were affected by the bedroom tax between 2013 and 2015, but 74% of those affected in 2013 remained in the same situation over the three-year study period. Of the remaining one quarter, 12% stopped receiving housing benefit and 14% no longer had extra bedrooms due to changes in family circumstances.  Only a handful of residents affected by the bedroom tax said they had moved as a direct result of the policy. Read more on the G15 website.

The Bedroom Tax Is Hurting More People Than Planned.

The Bedroom Tax has already led to many suicides of people who could not afford to pay their rent and could not bear to be made homeless. Now the Conservative government has admitted that 57,485 households are behind with their rent because of the benefit cut. And another 24,000 are in arrears because of Universal Credit or the benefit cap – both imposed by the Conservatives. The Tories aren’t brave enough to admit these facts openly – they hid the evidence in their English Housing Survey for 2014/15 – a document containing figures that are more than a year old. Read more on the Guerilla Wire website.

Councils Spend £100m Helping Renters Hit By Benefit Cuts

Local authorities across Britain spent almost £100m last year making up the rents of families affected by the bedroom tax and benefit cap, official figures have revealed. Just over £14m was spent helping renters whose finances had been reined in by the £500-a-week benefit cap, while £83.5m was spent making up the rents of people whose benefits had been cut by what the government terms “the removal of the spare room subsidy”. In England where extra funds were not on offer, 140 councils also spent all of or more than their entire Discretionary Housing Payments allocation including a handful which spent nearly twice as much. Read more on the Welfare Weekly website.