Rain Belfast Hi 16 °C | Lo 9°C

MPs wrangle over 'bedroom tax'

Tuesday, 21 February 2012

Iain Duncan Smith's proposed welfare reforms have been sent back and forth between the two Houses of Parliament

Iain Duncan Smith's proposed welfare reforms have been sent back and forth between the two Houses of Parliament

MPs are to be asked to throw out restrictions to the Government's proposed "bedroom tax" in the latest round of parliamentary wrangling over Iain Duncan Smith's welfare shake-up.

The Government suffered a setback in the House of Lords last week over the plans, which will dock benefits for tenants in social housing with spare rooms.

A rebellion by six Liberal Democrat peers helped inflict a narrow defeat on ministers over the change, meaning the disabled, war widows and foster carers would not be affected unless they refused to take up an offer of a suitable alternative home.

Peers voted by a majority 10 in favour of an amendment to the Welfare Reform Bill by crossbencher Lord Best.

He warned that families on low incomes hit by the size criteria, which would see a 14% reduction in housing benefits for having a spare room or a 25% reduction for having more than one extra bedroom, could be forced to use payday lenders or loan sharks to make up the shortfall when the changes come into force next April. "While older tenants may have put aside a bit, few will be able to cope when faced with a new tax of £728 every year on top of the rises in their heating bills and other costs," he said.

But MPs will be asked to overturn the defeat in the latest stage of the "ping pong" process, which has seen the Bill sent back and forth between the two Houses of Parliament as the Lords and Commons search for an agreement over the proposals.

The size criteria is the final issue on which the two chambers are still in dispute. The Welfare Reform Bill puts in place a £26,000 benefits cap and introduces a new, simplified universal credit to replace a complex range of payments.

Earlier this month MPs overturned a series of defeats suffered by the Government in the Lords and, because the measures would have involved extra spending, the changes were ruled to have infringed on the "financial privilege" of the Commons, which has responsibility for the budget.

The ruling was fiercely challenged by some senior peers, who argued it had restricted their ability to scrutinise the legislation. The £100 million cost of Lord Best's measure means financial privilege could again be used as the reason if MPs delete the amendment.

A Department of Work and Pensions spokesman said: "The House of Commons has made its position clear on amendments which would result in additional spending, and the Government will seek to overturn the size criteria amendment when the Bill returns for further consideration by the Commons. The majority of the public agree with the Government's welfare reforms and we look forward to delivering on these radical proposals that will make our welfare system better and fairer."

Clint scares the bejeebers out of daughters' prospective boyfriends

Clint Eastwood

Queen Elizabeth: A life in pictures

Queen Elizabeth

Horst Faas: Pics that changed history

Horst Faas

FHM's Sexiest Women 2012

Tulisa FHM's Sexiest Women 2012

NiteLife: The Roost, Granny's, Bert's

Had a big night out? Click here to send your pics

Old School Pics: Alex Higgins

Old School

To launch gallery click image or select school below

Methodist College, Campbell College, Grosvenor,
Bangor Grammar, Dunlambert, St Augustine's,
St Dominic's, Royal Academy, Ballymena Academy

Gallery: Awesome images of Titanic

Gallery: Awesome images of Titanic

In Pictures: Lingerie Super Bowl 2012

In Pictures: Lingerie Super Bowl 2012

Reader Pics: Ulster Beauty Spots

beauty spot

Click here to launch Beauty Spots gallery

View one of our other popular Readers' Galleries

Winter Pictures One Summer's Day

The Troubles: Northern Ireland's First Minister and Deputy First Minister

You know you're from Belfast when . .

In Pictures: You know you're from Belfast when...

Belfast-isms: 'Yous should click here - it's class like'

Belfast Telegraph Home Delivery

When you visit this website www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk, we use cookies to enhance your browsing experience and serve you with advertisements which might interest you.

To find out more about cookies and how to manage them Click Here

Exams

Just Born: Readers' Baby Pictures

Just Born: Readers' Baby Pictures

To send Us Your Baby snaps just Click here

Just Wed: Readers' Wedding Pictures

Just Born: Readers' Wedding Pictures

To send Us Your Wedding snaps just Click here

Latest Comments

Belfast Telegraph Home Delivery