Opposing the cuts

I have been greatly upset to read in the press that the rent for Council and Housing Associations might be doubled under the Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition government and that a council flat wouldn’t be for life anymore.

The new Government have put a cap on the amount of Housing Benefit that can be claimed depending on how many rooms are in your home. For a one bedroom flat, which most people from SHP would be moving into, the cap is £250 per week. I think this is reasonable as the average rent is around £100 per week for council accommodation in this area. However, if Councils and Housing Associations double their rent, it may go over the limit to housing benefit currently in place.

I recently moved  on from the SHP project and into a one bedroom council flat. I am worried that when I eventually start paid employment I won’t be able to afford to pay the rent, as I may no longer be eligible for housing benefit, and that I will be priced out of keeping a council flat in Islington. I might have to move to a deprived area on the outskirts of London and away from friends and a familiar community. I have been living in Islington since 1991/1992 and I came here to study drama. I have no contact with my family and Islington is now my home so I want to stay living here.

The Government claims that the housing benefit cuts will save the country £270 million per year. But over 50,000 claimants will, on average, lose £93 per week.

It’s not just the council and housing association sector that is affected by the cuts. A lot of people on housing benefit rent private accommodation. Jeremy Corbyn says, “ I am very concerned about the changes in housing benefit. Under the new levels of local housing allowance, I am fearful that the private sector will be too expensive for many and they will be forced to move out of the area. We need rent controls and more council housing being built to give everyone a secure home.”

I don’t know how things will pan out and whether there will be so much opposition and protest against the changes that the Government will back down or whether the cuts will go ahead, and may even be deeper than they are currently being proposed, but I hope that’s not the case. I think the public should oppose all the welfare cuts because they affect us all. No matter how much money you have, you never know when you might need the state to help you.

K