Forums Forums Wirral Information Wirral Council will bedroom tax affect you?

Thanks Salmon, I hadnt heard the interview , so very useful - will have a look.

there is an Official e-petition on direct gov uk, started for Ian Duncan Smith: to Live on £53 for one week, 6579 have already signed,
Everyone Please sign
http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/47898

I do find it quite pathetic when folk jump on a bandwagon without taking the time or trouble to check the facts which in this case are based on completely,probably deliberately, misquoted statements.

Anything that embarrasses IDS....

???????

I agree: and I certainly won't be signing any petitions.

The cause.com petition has gone viral, regardless.

Granted that interview wasn't the best example, nor was it representative of the majority of benefit claimants. The reality is a single person (over 21) living on their own gets their Council Tax and rent (limited) paid. They then receive £71 @ week. Out of this £71 they have to pay:

Gas £15.00 @ week
Electric £15.00 @ week
Water Rates £8.00 @ week,
TV Licence £2.80 @ week
£42.80

Out of the remaining £28.20 they have to feed themselves for 7 days. Then they also have to buy essentials: soap, shampoo, washing powder etc. This is all before they've bought a tea bag or a pint of milk.

This is why the VAST MAJORITY of unemployed people are doing everything they can to get jobs and support themselves

N.B. This post doesn't take in to account the recent changes, some of the people I mentioned above might have to pay Council Tax now too.

I find the lack of empathy from some contributors to this thread disheartening.

Look a the figures above, would you choose to be unemployed?

Hmmmm, thought not!

Some posters are just blatent Shills, Zubee. Best ignored.

I wish I D S had done this differently.How about this --- As someone pointed out earlier, it was pretty obvious that for various reasons, the country was going to need many more 1 bedroom homes . I think he should have first forced councils to bring ALL their social housing stock into use (nothing lying around empty) , used govt money to buy cheap housing during the crash to convert to further social housing, built more one bed units,(everything of course with proper insulation and South facing roofs) (you can use some of the foreign aid budget Duncan). At the same time, a new understanding of what social housing actually means, should have been initiated. I reckon its wrong to see a council owned property as 'belonging' to its tennant .No its not , it 'belongs' to all of us in effect. It should be seen, as housing set aside for those who are unable to afford alternative living accommodation , at that point in time. It needs to become accepted, that the 'need' for this property will be kept under constant review , because its madness for a council to end up having situations like families holed up in hotels when theres maybe a dozen 3/4 bedroomed council properties in the borough with only one person resident and so on. To be effective, the council surely has to be free to move people around ?
The problem now, is that none of that planning/groundwork has been done, so theres a shortage of 1 bed accommodation for folk to move to , and Maggie Thatcher was responsible for the phenomenon of people thinking their subsidized council property was automatically theirs for life when she started 'right to buy' (which I believe was and is scandalous) So- you can appreciate how upset those social housing tennants are now, when they have been 'allowed' to feel its their home for life , finding they have to either get out to a smaller place , or lose benefits money as a penalty for staying . You cant just spring such life changing stuff on people at such short notice, thats the cruel part.
ok ,technically the Govt warned them two years ago that this was on the cards, but they (Govt) didnt make any effort that I can see, to seriously implement the bricks and mortar plans I mentioned above, or start making it clear that in future, you couldnt consider a particular property in THEIR social housing stock as 'yours' for life .
I get it that ok, people need security , and its nice to feel you can put money into a 'set' place to make it home -- but life aint perfect , social housing is massively important because people should NEVER have no where to live , so it has to be managed as effectively as possible to make sure each property is best utilized.
So , I think I D S is on the right track, but his lack of planning /timing/ is SO SO wrong .If ONLY hed made sure first that what he is demanding is actually feasible.

venice

So , I think I D S is on the right track, but his lack of planning /timing/ is SO SO wrong .If ONLY hed made sure first that what he is demanding is actually feasible.

[/quote]

That sums things up pretty well I think.As I mentioned very early on in this thread, there is a lot of sense in the broad idea but a blanket rule for all is wrong and patently unworkable.Each case should be studied on it's merits as it is not right for people to be forced into penury but also it is not right for people to be living in accommodation with spare rooms which they clearly do not need.

My thoughts exactly rude, see you on Monday, I have not decided what to write on my placard yet.

Rude have a read of this, what a shame WPH does not show the same compassion for its tenants.
An open letter to the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister about the impact of the bedroom tax on our tenants. http://www.riverside.org.uk/corporate/news_and_press_office/riverside_news/openletter.aspx

As the spare bedroom saga deepens, maybe this is the solution:-

http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/featu...ey-from-your-spare-bedroom-2013040364526

Merely a suggestion.