New Clause 10
Welfare Reform Bill
12:15 pm
Danny Alexander (Shadow Minister and Disability Spokesperson, Work & Pensions; Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey, Liberal Democrat)
I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time.
The intention of the new clause is clear: it would remove the requirement for the claimant to have physically moved into the new home and become liable for rent on two homes. It is to cover the situation in which someone who is entitled to housing benefit on one home is moving to another home where they are also entitled to housing benefit. It would allow the period of four weeks to be extended where applicants are awaiting the outcome of an application for a social fund payment to meet the need arising from the move or in connection with setting up home in a new dwelling.
I am grateful again to Shelter for briefing and information in support of the new clause. The idea is that regulations should be amended to enable a household moving home to claim housing benefit on two properties for four weeks in circumstances in which it continues to have two rental liabilities but has not moved home. At present, housing benefit is paid for rent on two properties only when the household has moved to the new property. We are talking about the period before somebody moves to a new property and has liability for two rents, upon either of which housing benefit would be allowable.
By way of background, I would say that homeless households living in temporary accommodation often accrue arrears because, while they are not able to move into unfurnished, permanent accommodation atthe point at which they accept an offer of new accommodation—perhaps because it takes time to obtain furnishings for the new home—the liability for the rental on the new property cannot be delayed until such issues have been dealt with.
As a result of the anomaly to which I draw attention, the regulations governing entitlement to housing benefits on two homes can contribute to hardship, rent arrears and, sometimes, repeat homelessness. The new clause proposes a simplification of the existing rules to make them more symmetrical in terms of whether the person has moved to the new home during the four-week period. It would substantially improve the situation. I admit—I am sure that the Under-Secretary will say this too—that relatively few people are in such circumstances. Given her positive response to the last new clause, I hope that she can be similarly positive to this one.