Andrew Gwynne
Main Page: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)(11 years, 3 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
Mr Pickles
My hon. Friend is quite right that I cannot comment on planning, but she has made her point most forcefully.
Andrew Gwynne (Denton and Reddish) (Lab)
The Government’s own research suggests that more than 42% of people affected by the bedroom tax will not be able to make up the financial difference and will instead go into arrears. I asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions this question last Monday and did not get an answer. Perhaps the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government can answer instead. Given the Government’s own research, how many people does his Department expect will now lose their homes?
Mr Pickles
One would think that the Labour party had not been committed to doing precisely this when it was in government, and that it was not prepared to make such sensible decisions. A few moments ago the Under-Secretary of State, my right hon. Friend the Member for Bath (Mr Foster), clearly demonstrated the number of houses that have more than two bedrooms empty and rightly pointed out that exactly the same arrangements existed for the private sector under the Labour Government. We are introducing uniformity between the private and public sectors.