Opposition Day — Housing Benefit Penalties for Social Tenants Deemed to Have Excess Bedrooms — 17 Dec 2014 at 16:09

The majority of MPs voted in favour of housing benefit penalties for social tenants for deemed to have excess bedrooms.

MPs were considering a motion:

• That this House
• believes that the housing benefit social sector size criteria, otherwise known as the bedroom tax, should be abolished with immediate effect.

An amendment had been moved stating:

• leave out from “House” to end and add:
• “'regrets' that the Government took over a housing benefit bill which was out of control, and without reform would have been more than £26 billion in 2014-15;
• 'notes' that the reforms the Government has implemented have brought housing benefit spending under control and helped to tackle over-crowding and better manage housing stock;
• 'further notes' that the Coalition has protected vulnerable groups through £165 million of discretionary housing payments in 2014;
• 'notes that', following the interim evaluation of the policy, the part of the Coalition led by the Deputy Prime Minister has proposed reforms to introduce other formal exemptions to the policy, including where claimants have not been made a reasonable alternative offer of accommodation; and
• 'believes' that the Opposition’s failure to support the Government’s wider welfare reforms, including the wholesale abolition of this policy, is financially unsustainable, and would put at risk savings of nearly £50 billion over the present Parliament, as well as leaving people languishing in over-crowded accommodation.”

The motion which was rejected in this vote was:

• That the original words stand part of the Question.

The majority of MPs taking part in the vote preferred the amended motion over the original version.

Debate in Parliament | Source |