Government minister clueless about tenants who cannot afford rent

Government minister clueless about tenants who cannot afford rent


Todays other news
Activists want the government to ban landlords seeking guarantors...
The NRLA has written to the Works and Pensions Secretary...
18 to 27 year olds are badly hit says Barclays...
Rightmove says 575,000 purchases are stuck in the final process...


The government has made no estimate of the number of people unable to meet housing costs due to the freeze on housing benefit rates.

The admission has been made by the Work and Pensions Minister, Mims Davies, in response to a parliamentary question.

Labour MP Wayne David used a written parliamentary question to ask what assessment the government has made of the potential effect of freezing the rates of Local Housing Allowance on the number of people who will be unable to meet their housing costs. 

The Work and Pensions minister, Mims Davies, responded: “The Department does not hold this information, therefore no such estimate had been made.”

It comes as the claimants of the Local Housing Allowance face a third year of their payments being frozen in cash terms. It means that housing support provided by the government does not reflect rents as they are today. Instead, they are linked to market rents as they were in 2019.

A recent analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies estimates that rented households in receipt of the LHA will receive an average of £50 a month less in benefit support than they would have got if rates had risen in line with rents.

Ben Beadle, chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, says: “The NRLA is appalled at the Government’s complacent attitude. Amidst a cost of living squeeze we need to do everything to support the sector and often vulnerable tenants in accessing the housing they need.

“It beggars belief that ministers have frozen vital support for many renters with no idea how many will be unable to afford their housing as a result.

“The Government should unfreeze housing benefit rates as a matter of urgency.”

 

Share this article ...

Join the conversation: Login and have your say

Want to comment on this story? Our focus is on providing a platform for you to share your insights and views and we welcome contributions. All comments are screened using specialist software and may be reviewed by our editorial team before publication. Landlord Today reserves the right to edit, withhold or delete comments that violate our guidelines, including those that harass, degrade, or intimidate others. Users who post such content may be banned from commenting.
By commenting, you agree to our Commenting Terms of Use.
Recommended for you
Related Articles
Activists want the government to ban landlords seeking guarantors...
Openreach has suggested an amendment to the Bill in the...
A new YouTube channel for landlords and investors is being...
Over 50% of landlords in the survey say the Renters...
The tenant was in hospital when he was evicted illegally...
The most vulnerable tenants may pay the highest price...
The controversial proposal is backed by the Welsh Government...
Recommended for you
Latest Features
Landlords have overcome other obstacles and will overcome this, it's...
This looks at the provisions of the Landlord and Tenant...
50% of all homes need to be heated by a...
Sponsored Content

Send to a friend

In order to send this article to a friend you must first login. Click on the button below to login or sign up.

No one likes pop-ups ...
But while you're here