'bedroom Tax' - Anyone Agree With It?

[Gromit]

The so called 'Bedroom Tax' starts today. Anyone receiving Housing Benefit (HB) who has a spare room will have their HB reduced.

Will it solve the housing shortage?
or
Is it a cynical stealthy way to cut the benefits bill?

[naomi24]

pdq, would you be prepared to pay more tax to enable the government to buy those second properties from the people who've worked to purchase them in the first place?

[emmie]

jordy what bad language, you are foolish if you think this is totally right and completely fair. I would use far worse language believe me, you are right, but anger only goes so far, then despair kicks in. I hope that you don't have to face this.

[pdq1]

If the tax was high enough many multiple home owners would think it not worthwhile hanging onto them.

[daffy654]

Another problem with having to downsize into the private sector is the need for deposits and rent in advance. All private landlords expect these and someone on benefits can't possibly get access to the amounts required. Many private landlord also refuse to offer tenancies to people on benefits.

[ummmm]

What is tying you to London?

[naomi24]

pdq, that doesn't answer my question.

[emmie]

i have never bought into the second homes thing, seems good for some, but it often comes at the price of many others. Haven't we seen this in our tourist hot spots, Cornwall lovely county that is, where many outsiders bought a second home, but don't spend a lot of time in it, thus depriving locals of the chance to live in the place they were born.. and the local community being split apart all because someone wanted a second home by the seaside, or in the country but not being part and parcel of that community. Perhaps it's the nature of the beast, that people don't see the fall out when this happens.

[naomi24]

The young adapt fairly easily, but I don't think it's reasonable to expect pensioners who've lived and worked in an area all their lives to up sticks and move miles away from all they know. The solution has to be to build more one bedroom council homes locally.

[emmie]

ummm, a few family members, friends, network of support, same as anyone, what keeps you in the place you live in, isn't it the same. living outside won't make it cheaper, it will be more expensive in the long term.

[emmie]

if the councils snapped up all the empty properties, flats, houses, or did up the ones they already own, this wouldn't be happening. But they don't and haven't, why do people just assume it's ok to be punished for having one spare bedroom, put a lodger in it is the councils answer.. I have come across endless women who have lost their husbands, they are not old, but not young either and their children have moved away or abroad, so you stick them in one bed flats, where?

[Gromit]

Maybe local councils could be given the power to impose a second home tax if more than 5% of properties in an are not locally owned and permantly lived in. The extra cashed raised could be used to build social housing for people who live in the community and support it all year round.

[jake-the-peg]

Once again we see the fatal flaw of arrogance in Tory policies.

Just like the poll tax they believe they can just bully through unpopular policies and everyone will just lump it

They could have come in more gently - giving people a 6 month relocation window, a less harsh criteria all sorts of ways to soften it.

But no - Hubris on a massive scale and it's a shame because some of the other reform ideas are the most interesting I've seen in a long time, like people not losing massive benefits the moment they earn over a threshold.


This is going to badly hit a lot of their supporters who won't forgive them easily

[whiskeryron]

The Tories started all this way back when Thatcher gave council tenents the opportunity of buying their council homes. The local councils should then have replaced the stock sold by building new homes which they did not do, thereby causing a shortage of houses to rent. This new (Tory) policy has been very badly thought out. The idea in principle is good in that after children have grown up & left home parent(s) could move into a smaller property & release homes to families waiting on the council list, however because of the failure of councils to build replacements there are no smaller homes for people to move to. What the government should have done is to take money from overseas aid ( charity begins at home) & give to councils to build before starting this scheme they would have a carrot to encourage people to move to a brand new smaller property.

WR.

[emmie]

they also moved the goalposts on pensionable age, so now that would be a lot later than some of my friends, who were born 1/2 years earlier. Think i will go back into hospital, oh wait a minute they kill people off there, so a no win situation. I agree there needed to be changes, but let us start with not giving any handouts to those recently arrived, i don't see why they who have paid nothing to the coffers of our country should get any help.

[naomi24]

Em, second home owners aren’t stopping people buying property. If a property is for sale, it’s available to anyone who wants to buy it. When young people born in my village leave home, they move away to towns because they can’t afford the prices here – but that isn’t due to second home owners hogging all the houses – it’s due to the fact that this is a desirable area and hence, prices are high.

[dollie65]

i quite agree with you em10 im on my own in a 3bed house and i cant downsize as theres no where to downsize to!!!!! theres a shortage of smaller properties for the older person...thankfully i get a private pension so the bedroom tax doesnt affect me...i do think it will cause more housing problems as people wont be able to afford to pay their rent and then they will end up homeless....

[emmie]

i think politicians of all hues are a bunch of no mark Salad Chefs, Miliband is no different from the rest he just happens to wear a different colour rosette.

[emmie]

yes t ossers..

[friedgreentomato]

I agree with it.