IDS no-show for bedroom tax debate

By Ian Dunt

Iain Duncan Smith is refusing to attend a debate on the bedroom tax today, in a move which has sparked outrage on the Labour benches.

The opposition day debate is Labour's latest attempt to vote down the policy, which cuts housing benefit for those deemed to have more rooms than they need.

But research suggests the majority of the 660,000 people affected have no smaller property to move to and that the policy could cost more than it saves.

"It shows just how out of touch this government is that Iain Duncan Smith is not bothering to turn up to the Commons to explain why hard-pressed families at the sharp end of the cost-of-living crisis are being hit with the bedroom tax, at the same time as millionaires are getting a tax cut," Rachel Reeves, Labour shadow work and pensions secretary said.

"This vote gives MPs a chance to show where they stand and vote to repeal this unjust and unworkable policy.

"If Tory and Lib Dem MPs vote against repeal, we won't let them forget it – and we'll step up our campaign to elect a Labour government that will."

Government ministers are very confident about the popularity of their welfare reforms, with most focus group and polling data suggesting the public want them to go even further.

But Labour believes the bedroom tax is one of the major exceptions. The policy is controversial for the way it cuts housing benefits even for people who have no option of moving to a smaller home.

It also disproportionately hits the disabled, with well over half those affected suffering from "significant difficulty in one or more areas of the individual's life", according to the Department of Work and Pensions research.

Over 400,000 disabled people are thought to have been affected. The average hit to claimants' income is £720.

Some worry the policy is forcing claimants into leaving council property and moving into private rented accommodation, making the housing bill even higher.

Ministers say the policy could cut £23 billion annual bill from the housing benefit bill and encourage people back into work.