Benefit cap will 'suck money out of Bristol's economy'
REFORMS to benefits will suck £125 million out of Bristol's economy, council bosses have warned.
Controversial changes including a cap on housing benefit and the scaling back of support for council tax payers.
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Bristol East Labour MP Kerry McCarthy
Experts said the overhaul could lead to an increase in crime, family breakdown and mental illness.
And Bristol East Labour MP Kerry McCarthy, pictured, warned residents would be made homeless and unable to pay their bills.
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But her Lib Dem rival, Stephen Williams, said "remarkably few" of his constituents had raised concerns.
The £125 million estimate, which has been based on Bristol's share of the UK's population, represents the total cuts to benefit pay outs in the city.
These include restrictions on housing benefit – single people aged up to 35 will have to live in shared accommodation, and the so-called "spare room tax" would penalise tenants who are deemed to have more rooms than they need.
One of the headline measures, a £26,000 cap on total benefit payments, is estimated to affect 500 households in Bristol.
Cash for council tax benefit is also being reduced. The government is handing councils control of running the scheme – and has demanded ten per cent savings. In Bristol's case, this is likely to take £7.5 million from the budget. Ministers have insisted pensioners be protected from any cuts, leaving the 31,000 working-age claimants in Bristol in the firing line for reductions of up to 20 per cent.
Bristol City Council insisted it had not made its own judge ments about the cuts, but had looked at the studies by organisations including children's charities and the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
A spokesman said: "The possible outcomes suggested by some of these groups include an increase in child poverty, an increase in debt, a rise in homelessness, a rise in crime and disorder, some people having to move to other, cheaper areas of the city with the consequent impact on services in those areas, a rise in domestic violence, increased family breakdown and an increase in physical and mental illness and less social cohesion."
The council has set up two task forces to deal with the changes. One will look at the impact on the council's finances and the other will examine the impact of the changes across the city.
Ms McCarthy said: "This is going to have a huge impact on people's lives. People are already being hit by rising cost of living, and food prices are going up. People are going suffer real hardship as a result."
But Mr Williams hit back.
He said: "Bristol is one of the most prosperous parts of the country, with relatively low unemployment. And while there may be some parts of the country where what she is saying would have some validity, it wouldn't appear to apply in Bristol. I have lived in a bedsit, and a one-bedroom flat – it's what people have to do."
Comments
by stuffit_jam
Tuesday, July 10 2012, 7:56PM
“don't get sidetracked over the £26k figure - this is exceptional and rare, designed to get everyone to agree with the cuts, which will in reality affect all of us unlucky enough to lose our jobs. This is when you will find out that housing benefit will now not cover the cost of a shared room (if u can find a landlord willing to take you)
the vast majority of any benefits are actually housing benefit: i.e paid directly to landlords charging rents that even if you are working you can barely afford. Taking action on this would help both unemployed and those in work i.e rent cap.
Attacks on benefits, even if you actually hate benefit claimants, worsen conditions for those in work. The reason being that higher benefits forces employers to have to take more out of their profits to give back to those doing the work...
bristol.indymedia.org/attachments/may2011/2sided.pdf”
by CityClarky
Thursday, July 05 2012, 5:52PM
“'I' owe no-one a living. Stop all benefits now.”
by Brizz_Tony
Thursday, July 05 2012, 5:15PM
“It's more than I earn. The world owes no-one a living.”
by 123bristol
Thursday, July 05 2012, 4:50PM
“@cembee - I do live in Clifton and Stephen Williams still veers between ignoring me and being abusive! I know some people who work/volunteer with the local Lib Dems and they say he's "notorious" for being unpleasant when challenged...certainly won't be voting for him if he runs for Mayor!”
by allananlyn
Wednesday, July 04 2012, 11:08PM
“£26,000 benefit cap,,,,,its a joke, dont think theres a job for me out there that would pay me that much,,,,,”
by matt234
Wednesday, July 04 2012, 9:30PM
“Vendors of scratchcards, cheap cider and rolling tobacco must be in a right panic.”
by ceembee
Wednesday, July 04 2012, 8:04PM
“@123Bristol - I agree with your comment vis a vis Stephen Williams. He is utterly useless and does not listen unless you live in Clifton. He certainly doesn't like being challenged.
Am appalled at the potential for increased homelessness likely to result from caps to housing benefit but not half as appalled by the rents charged by private landlords for really dreadful flats in dire condition. An example of this type of landlord featured on this website a few weeks ago when he was fined by the Court. Bring back fair rents and Rent Tribunals. As for benefits it's disheartening seeing some of my colleagues working full time and taking home less than some people receive in benefit payments. Also sick to death of economic migrants from various EU countries coming here and claiming benefits - no chance of working as many don't speak English and have only come here because they cannot get benefit in their own country or benefit ceased there because they'd been claiming so long.”
by TeabagTerry
Wednesday, July 04 2012, 4:45PM
“A benefits CAP of £26,000? Jesus!
No wonder so many people in this country can't be ****d to work.
What an absolute shambles!”
by TheSineater
Wednesday, July 04 2012, 4:10PM
“@jaym sorry you misread my post my comment was meant to mean that ppl dont always have choices with employment and also that when ppl say if you cant afford kids dont have them,
we also dont have that option when they are born.
As for benefits cuts I agree to a point some ppl do take advantadge.”
by jaym00007
Wednesday, July 04 2012, 2:58PM
“@TheSineater Unemployed because of a mental illness? Just because you are a mental midget doesn't mean the rest have to pay for you. Damn right too that benefits should be scaled back and in most cases cut altogether.”