tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post6009793373466964682..comments2024-03-04T17:54:32.559+00:00Comments on Iain Dale's Diary: Draconian Housing Benefit Cuts? Do Us a Favour...Iain Dalehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03270146219458384372noreply@blogger.comBlogger58125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-8603300610040941912010-10-28T16:54:53.260+01:002010-10-28T16:54:53.260+01:00Do tell me, Roger how the low paid in New York man...Do tell me, Roger how the low paid in New York manage to get to work then without housing benefit. Their fares are on par with ours.<br /><br />How come landlords in inner cities take housing benefit tenants but ones in suburbs don't - what hogwash.Lady Finchleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03695379463537122656noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-20139032743865464052010-10-28T16:06:21.955+01:002010-10-28T16:06:21.955+01:00Adam - you are talking out of your arse. We, the p...Adam - you are talking out of your arse. We, the people on middling salaries are the ones who get nothing. Milking the system? Can I have some of that stuff you're smoking?<br /><br />If this will do anything it will break the landlords' stranglehold. They up their rents for the DSS because they CAN and the DSS pays it. Get a grip.Lady Finchleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03695379463537122656noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-71818379149220446212010-10-28T15:00:01.954+01:002010-10-28T15:00:01.954+01:00"We all had to start somewhere my first job f..."We all had to start somewhere my first job for which i had no GCSE's either ( and no minimum wage) was tough. My take home pay almost exactly equalled my rent. So in order to live I had a part time evening job waiting tables too. It is perfectly doable."<br /><br />The problem is though, that for many people this doesn't just apply to their first job. They end up working for much of their lives doing long hours for low wages. <br /><br />In the 19th century, this "work for us till you drop" culture was promoted by the Whigs and Liberals with their laissez faire attitude to making money. The combination of long hours, poor conditions, and people working simply to provide food and shelter, with little time for themselves created a very unpleasant backlash called socialism.<br /><br />The One Nation Conservatives of the 19th century understood this, which is why they introduced much needed reforms.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01962138781180304564noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-5633008994959250142010-10-28T14:07:43.058+01:002010-10-28T14:07:43.058+01:00"What I find revealing about much of this deb..."What I find revealing about much of this debate is how nearly all the oppobrium is being aimed at those claiming Housing Benefit rather than those who are charging what are clearly inflated rents for their property."<br /><br />Yes, but what would you actually "do" about it.<br /><br />Have the goverment tell landlords what they can charge?<br /><br />Well you can surely see what a disaster that would turn out to be.bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04804656328512287972noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-85729018112831474022010-10-28T13:51:35.114+01:002010-10-28T13:51:35.114+01:00It is no good saying there are plenty of rented pr...It is no good saying there are plenty of rented properties available in outer London that benefit claimants could move to. First, landlords are reluctant to take people on housing benefit - including the many claimants who are already working. Secondly, even if landlords could be prevailed upon to accept claimants, the new tenants would not be able to afford the extortionate fairs to and from central London in order to service the needs of the rich who are able to remain there. Nor, given the chronic lack of jobs in the outer boroughs, would they be able in most cases to find jobs nearer their new homes. The only sensible solution is to build hundreds of thousands of new council houses, which can then be let to those in need at reasonable, non-exploitative rents.Rogerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12178842548479724560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-39208105448932981312010-10-28T13:25:15.035+01:002010-10-28T13:25:15.035+01:00"What I find revealing about much of this deb..."What I find revealing about much of this debate is how nearly all the oppobrium is being aimed at those claiming Housing Benefit rather than those who are charging what are clearly inflated rents for their property."<br /><br />At last somebody has rasied the real issue. This is the real problem. When I lived in Bristol, it was normal practice for landlords to put the rent up if you happened to lose your job. If you were empoyed but still receiving housing benefit, it was important to ensure that you received the cheque from the council and not let the landlord know that you were receiving HB top ups - if they found this out, once again they would put the rents up, knowing full well that they could milk the system this way.<br /><br />Sadly the coalition seem to be focussing on the claimant rather than the actual recipient of the money - the landlords - read "housing benefit farmers"... but then again that's not too surprising as many of these people are viewed as Middle England Conservative voters, and so must not be annoyed. They however are the real ones milking the state for all it's worth.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01962138781180304564noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-20561071626849742092010-10-28T12:43:28.183+01:002010-10-28T12:43:28.183+01:00@womble
Sorry I disagree, you don't need GCSE...@womble<br /><br />Sorry I disagree, you don't need GCSE's or anything else to get a decent job, there are lots of jobs about in Cambridge as elsewhere.<br /><br />We all had to start somewhere my first job for which i had no GCSE's either ( and no minimum wage) was tough. My take home pay almost exactly equalled my rent. So in order to live I had a part time evening job waiting tables too. It is perfectly doableLibertarianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15219132362086878801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-6797437316871568982010-10-28T12:40:21.812+01:002010-10-28T12:40:21.812+01:00What I find revealing about much of this debate is...What I find revealing about much of this debate is how nearly all the oppobrium is being aimed at those claiming Housing Benefit rather than those who are charging what are clearly inflated rents for their property. Perhaps a few measures directly aimed at the landlords might be called for so as to reduce rentals - especially since not a few are being funded by buy to let speculators which contributed in no small part to the country's financial problems.<br /><br />But then of course Tories have always used the "undeserving poor" as a means for drawing attention away from the "undeserving rich" haven't they?<br /><br />I am happy to acknowledge that one of the failings of the Labour Government is that it underestimated the need to regulate markets where it intervened to improve benefits and it underestimated the ability of some of the private sector to come in and in effect claim those benefits for themselves rather than the intended beneficiaries. A similar thing has occurred in the nursery sector, where much of the benefit in tax reliefs was pretty quickly gobbled up in higher nursery charges. But Labour's fault was one of naivety rather than nastiness as with the present proposals.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-72939386295368928592010-10-28T12:31:09.846+01:002010-10-28T12:31:09.846+01:00**Isn't the maximum of £26,000 a year for all ...**Isn't the maximum of £26,000 a year for all benefits not housing benefit. i.e. the amount of housing benefit you can claim is the balancing figure to take you up to £500 a week, hence it is very unlikely you would have £400 a week to spend on rent.**<br /><br />Even if that’s the case, it’s still several thousand pounds more than I earn BEFORE tax.<br /><br />**If we start shifting people on housing benefit to more affordable areas we will end up with ghettos of inequity where life chances are much reduced.**<br /><br />Why should a privileged few get massive HB handouts, whilst the vast majority on low incomes have to live in such affordable areas (including me).<br /><br />Why on earth do you think that is fair?<br /><br /><br />“However, what I do have a problem with is a system where thousands of people have no place to go since they have been evicted from their private flat and there are no rooms in shared flats available.”<br /><br />So are they going to be made homeless, or are they going to have to move to affordable areas creating “ghettos”?<br /><br />You can’t have it both ways.bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04804656328512287972noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-66828033316807922912010-10-28T00:42:06.833+01:002010-10-28T00:42:06.833+01:00The other effect of this excellent measure should ...The other effect of this excellent measure should be to force rents down from private landlords. Suckling on the teat of the DSS gives "buy to let" and other private landlords excessive profits because they can take local councils for a ride. No wonder this benefit has risen to £20 billion in the last ten years.Osama the Nazarenehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13627668308711758602noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-23328481435522318782010-10-27T21:31:53.079+01:002010-10-27T21:31:53.079+01:00Womble - there are hardly going to be mass evictio...Womble - there are hardly going to be mass evictions. And since the writing is on the wall now they have plenty time to prepare. I think it absolutely disgraceful anyway that able-bodied young people can go straight on the dole and get a flat. It just ain't done where I come from.Lady Finchleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03695379463537122656noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-58607392289931811842010-10-27T21:01:33.918+01:002010-10-27T21:01:33.918+01:00WELFARE CLAIMANTS READ THISProposed housing benefi...WELFARE CLAIMANTS READ THISProposed housing benefit cuts will penalise all housing benefit claimants,many of them are working or have worked in the past and will work again in the future.Please will the ill-informed stop bashing HB customers,HB is an in work benefit entitlement available to any one who NEEDS it.This is unlike many other in work benefits that the middle classes choose to pick up,even those who dont NEED it.HB only accounts for 10% of the annual WELFARE spend,like I said some people who dont NEED WELFARE help claim it anyway.Maybe some people need to look at what they are getting from WELFARE instead of denying it just because they happen to be middle class.andygibbohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02144747554510623556noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-84088185241018223522010-10-27T19:49:18.316+01:002010-10-27T19:49:18.316+01:00Labour shows their true red colors. What do you t...Labour shows their true red colors. What do you think about this? Vote at johngaltinlondon.blogspot.com.John Galthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16109649072936119081noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-44906563444004826722010-10-27T19:32:00.709+01:002010-10-27T19:32:00.709+01:00Where I live, a half hour from Charing Cross by ra...Where I live, a half hour from Charing Cross by rail or about 11 miles as the crow flies you can rent virtually any property for much less than £400 a week. Two bedroomed houses or flats close to the station go for about £650 a month and 4 bedroomed houses for about £1100.Victor, NW Kenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14778890471547456396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-51079005416830938972010-10-27T18:51:21.548+01:002010-10-27T18:51:21.548+01:00Womble - I rent a room as I want to save money, on...Womble - I rent a room as I want to save money, one day have a family, and get a big house! I may as well spend my money now, have a great time, start a family (maybe related to the great time!) and not work and have a nice house at 1600 rent a month! Fortunately/unfortunately I am a kind of person who wants to work so unlikely I am going to go down that route.<br /><br />By all means benefits (it should be renamed to something like "emergency help") should be a safety net, not a lifestyle choice.<br /><br />A family of 11 is an extreme example. what about families of 2, 3, 4, 5. <br /><br />Housing "benefit" should be to ensure you have a roof over your head. Not a benefit where you can choose to live!Aspiring Rainmakerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05517201061338120732noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-88250195550039205592010-10-27T18:48:16.041+01:002010-10-27T18:48:16.041+01:00Neither you nor your correspondent seem to underst...Neither you nor your correspondent seem to understand how the system works - Though you are not alone in that.<br /><br />The £400pw figure is a cap not an allowance, and will only impact inner London. For example the current LHA for a 4 bed property in Outer South East London (Lewisham) is £293.42, https://lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/Secure/LHARateSearch.aspx?SearchType=LA<br /><br />That will fall as result of these changes and continue to reduce in real terms due to the switch to CPI rather than uprating.<br /><br />So some of the properties mentioned probably wouldn't be eligible for HB under the current system let alone the new one.jfhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17387644109290045810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-54179569000594109062010-10-27T18:30:43.083+01:002010-10-27T18:30:43.083+01:00Terlock: No, Sorry, I didn't, I understand you...Terlock: No, Sorry, I didn't, I understand your point.<br /><br />Libertarian: not everyone can get a well paid job with no GCSEs the rent for a bedroom in Cambridge (where I live) is somewhere around £100+ a week excluding bills, plus it is near on impossible to find somewhere private which will take housing benefit.<br /><br />Bear in mind that not everyone on housing benefit is a "scrounger", they could be working and not earn enough to pay for their accomadation.Womblehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00672541573741822921noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-55254709617899231252010-10-27T17:43:56.577+01:002010-10-27T17:43:56.577+01:00Womble,
Please explain why all these under 35'...Womble,<br /><br />Please explain why all these under 35's are being made homeless and by whom.<br /><br />Why don't they do like we did when we were under 30 and single, get a job, pay rent save as much as you can?<br /><br />As some people have pointed out about the availability of flats so it is with jobs.<br /><br />There were 480,602 unfilled job vacancies last quarter in UK.<br /><br />There are literally hundreds of job portals on the net offering well paid jobsLibertarianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15219132362086878801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-17542907177317307192010-10-27T17:36:23.452+01:002010-10-27T17:36:23.452+01:00Womble - did you look at those houses? They aren&#...Womble - did you look at those houses? They aren't exactly run of the mill! Unless that's your idea of standard as to me they were luxury.TeRLocKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11533678437014304033noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-38629201029151275942010-10-27T17:34:34.467+01:002010-10-27T17:34:34.467+01:00Lady Finchley: Hi, as I recall I never mentioned w...Lady Finchley: Hi, as I recall I never mentioned whether or not it might be right to shar a flat, in fact I have no problem with it on the most part. However, what I do have a problem with is a system where thousands of people have no place to go since they have been evicted from their private flat and there are no rooms in shared flats available.<br /><br />I am trying very hard to see your point with regard to my post. Are you suggesting that the people who may be evicted find someone to share their flat with to split the rent?Womblehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00672541573741822921noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-66489963676747500802010-10-27T17:28:02.336+01:002010-10-27T17:28:02.336+01:00Womble - sharing flats are a way of life in New Yo...Womble - sharing flats are a way of life in New York - people had better learn to live with it here.<br /><br />When my husband was growing up he was one of nine children. The parents had one room, the boys had another and the girls another. They were working class and surprise surprise did not get any housing benefit - didn't exist in those days. They made do. If you can't afford so many children don't have them.Lady Finchleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03695379463537122656noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-38952701298060522742010-10-27T17:04:00.978+01:002010-10-27T17:04:00.978+01:00Maybe someone can tell the BBC.
Radio 5 have ju...Maybe someone can tell the <b>BBC</b>. <br /><br />Radio 5 have just done a piece from BRIXTON. <br /><br /><i>Apparently you will be hard pushed even in Brixton to get somewhere for your free £400 quid a week Tax free.</i>Patrickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07456462562170192857noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-88881861871819172132010-10-27T16:54:12.700+01:002010-10-27T16:54:12.700+01:00The labour party just sent me this email:
Edward
...The labour party just sent me this email:<br /><br />Edward<br /><br />You’ve probably seen on the news that the government are planning huge changes to housing benefit.<br /><br />At a time when five unemployed people are chasing every vacancy in the British economy, the Tories and Lib Dems are proposing that people should lose 10% of their housing benefit after being unable to find work for 12 months.<br /><br />This is a government that says that if you can’t find a job you’ll lose money – regardless if you attend interviews, re-train, learn a new skill and do everything you can to find one.<br /><br />You and I know this isn’t fair. There is a better way <br /><br />At a time when the government's own figures say we’re going to see 490,000 fewer public sector jobs and – according to the respected company PwC - 500,000 job losses in the private sector, we shouldn't punish people who try and fail to find work.<br /><br />Thousands made a difference last week by sharing their better way. Now I’m asking you to do it again <br /><br />We should be aiming to guarantee jobs for the long term unemployed, not risk homelessness for those who are doing their best to find work.<br /><br />I’m urging Lib Dem MPs to join us and force the Government to think again. You can play your part to by sharing your better way.<br /><br />Thank you<br /><br />Douglas <br /><br /><br /><br />(I signed up for these messages when I commented on their suggestion box for the economy)Edward Bondhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09763816075493068303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-59758949544927874022010-10-27T16:46:01.838+01:002010-10-27T16:46:01.838+01:00On a similar note, my partner and I are both junio...On a similar note, my partner and I are both junior doctors living in a generously sized two bedroom rented flat in the centre of Birmingham.<br /><br />We pay £425 per month each, and frankly with the cost of taxes, professional expenses, commuting etc, we would have difficulty paying more.<br /><br />So I am somewhat aghast that Labour are claiming that £400 per Week is too little for Housing benefit claimants.<br /><br />I could understand the cost of rent being much higher in central London, but I have plenty of friends who live and work in London with good salaries who couldn't afford £400pw and so live on the outskirts.<br /><br />Anyone who thinks that those out of work deserve better than those in work and paying taxes needs their head checked!Grumblestiltskinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15446027518330755888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-89805773764853532332010-10-27T16:41:54.340+01:002010-10-27T16:41:54.340+01:00Terlock: That was exactly his point, that is a pre...Terlock: That was exactly his point, that is a pretty normal rent for Nottingham, he was just commenting on the rent levels in London.Womblehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00672541573741822921noreply@blogger.com