Just 50 One-Bed Homes for 7,000 Hit by Bedroom Tax In One City

The bedroom tax will strip 7,000 households in one city of vital benefits, despite there being just 50 one-bed homes available to downsize to.  The research, in Newcastle, reveals 5,379 council tenants there have one spare room.  The plan means they will lose 14% of their housing benefit, worth £8.40 a week on average.  Another 1,258 households with two spare bedrooms face a massive 25% cut, the equivalent of £15 a week, or £780 a year.  Yet Your Homes Newcastle, which looks after council housing stock, has just 50 one-bedroom homes available, even if those 6,637 families affected were able or wanted to move. And there are thousands more Housing Association residents in the city, who could also be hit when the changes come in next month. Read more on the Daily Mirror website.