I saw a newspaper article about the leaked letter dated 6 months ago from one government official to others stating that with the new proposed changes to housing benefit will lead to around 40000 households becoming homeless.
It stated that the cap on benefits should be £26,000 per year, so I thought I would see of I could find a way to see who was getting more than that per year and I found the above named website which gives a report on the proposed changes. It makes for erm interesting reading if a little confusing for the lay person like me.
On the first page the following is stated.
"other key non-monetised costs by 'main affected groups'
The cap is likely to affect where different family types will be able to live. Housing Benefit may no longer cover housing costs and some households may go into rent arrears. This will require expense and effort by landlords and courts to evict and seek to recoup rent arrears. Some households are likely to present as homeless, and may as a result need to move into more expensive temprary accommodation, at a cost to the local authority. It is not possible to quantify these costs because they are based on behavioural changes which are difficult to assess robustly."
Ok.
The cap is likely to affect where different families live, these are the families where there may be some in private lets and some in social housing, so of course they will be paying different rates. Social housing by definition is lower rents because they are supposed to be helping society, however private landlords are not governed by the same rules and procedures.
Housing benefit may no longer cover housing costs, erm what is it going to cover then??? some households may go into rent arrears, you don't say??? How many people are already on the bread line, you know this invisible line someone drew once saying thats what each person needs to live on, the one where if you have less you are in poverty??
Now these people are the very ones HB was created to help, but no, get a job or move. Never mind that you cant afford to move because you cant hire a van to move your belongings, never mind the fact that by not paying your rent you are making yourself (and your family) intentionally homeless which means the local council are under no obligation to rehome you.
Which of course means the children will go into care, costing thousands to the tax payer. You will go into a hostel heavily subsidised at the moment but for how long?? The local social housing landlords (the council and housing associations) can and probably will make you wait for years to gain enough points to be deemed severe enough to get to the top of the list for a property. Meanwhile with no fixed abode you have no chance of work and no chance of getting your children back. Ohh and your previous landlord will be chasing you through the courts to claim back what you dont have and never had to pay them the rent the government states you dont need as much help to pay them. Dont forget you cant fight back because there is less and less legal aid being given and with CAB being over worked and not having enough staff to cope with the demands which will be placed on them, who will help you fight???
But its ok beacause the government who know this will happen cant be bothered to ask an organisation like CAB what the likelyhood of that happening actually is.
On page 3 I saw the following:
"Specific Impact Test: Checklist" have a look and see if you see the points I saw . . .
It states there will be no social impact - health and wellbeing, human rights, justice system or rural proofing.
Now I dont understand what Rural proofing is but I will try and find out and report back soon, in the meantime I will deal with the points I do understand.
How can the people doing this impact test not realise that it WILL have a significant impact??
If you are worrying how to keep your family together in your home, you will make yourself ill and Im sure the 40,000 it is expected to make homeless are already worrying.
As for the justice system not being affected really??? Ok simple really if I cannot feed my children I will (happily and gladly) turn to crime, stealing food to feed them, will this not make the police investigate?? The courts try me?? The prison service lock me up??
All of this is before I even get to the BASIC human right of living without fear of persecution.
I also noted on page 5 that people on Working Tax Credits, Disability Living Allowance Constant Attendance Allowance and War Widows will be exempt.
However with 20% of claimants being thrown off DLA in the next 3 years, which means the genuine disabled will have no help to recognise their disabilities. Which of course means according to DWP and ATOS (who will be the lucky lucky ones doing the assessments when DLA changes to Personal Independent Payments) they were faking it anyway.
That however will be of little concequence to the millions who will not have the money to survive never mind the extra 37% on average it costs a household with a disabled person.
What about the houses that have been adapted for disabled people?? Those will often be flats, well the ones I know of are so Im going to go with what I know - unlike the government.
If someone needs to use a wheelchair a standard door is too small, so the doors have to be adapted costing money.
Light switches have to be lowered, costing money.
Kitchens have to be refurbished, costing money.
Bathrooms need to be changed for wet rooms, costing money.
If councils who would do this work for tenants, are paying thousands for other tenants who are expensive temporary accommodation, where will this money come from?? How will someone thrown off DLA for being able to mobilise (in a wheelchair will be seen as the same as walking under the new guidelines) be able to get these renovations??
To me this stinks on many ways but the most important one is that it is a FALSE ECONOMY.
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