Bedroom Tax Begins To Bite On Council House Tenants

Seven months after the introduction of the so-called ‘bedroom tax’ two thirds of council house tenants affected are behind with rent, a Freedom of Information request has found. Of 2,920 Bristol council households affected, 1,990 are behind with rent, and 250 have received a Notice of Seeking Possession. Most given a notice had some level of arrears when the legislation came into force, but 14 owed nothing. Thirteen of these have continued to slide further into debt, and one has already been referred to court – as have an unspecified number of others who already owed money to the council. Just over 100 tenants have managed to transfer or exchange into a smaller social home. Read more on Bristol 24/7.