Mark Prisk
Main Page: Mark Prisk (Conservative - Hertford and Stortford)
Sajid Javid
I hope that the hon. Lady will join me in welcoming universal credit as a policy that helps to get people into work, including in her constituency. Where there have been issues, my right hon. Friend the Work and Pensions Secretary has listened carefully. He responded through the recent Budget, including with changes that will help people who were getting housing benefit, such as the new transition to universal credit housing benefit that will help some 2.3 million people.
Mr Mark Prisk (Hertford and Stortford) (Con)
The recent National Audit Office report on this issue showed that while councils have increased their spending on tackling homelessness, they have reduced their spending on preventing it in the first place. These priorities seem to make no sense. May I urge the Secretary of State to ensure that all councils reverse this trend so that we can properly tackle the causes, not just the symptoms?
Sajid Javid
My hon. Friend speaks with experience; as a former Housing and Planning Minister, he knows these issues well. He is right to highlight this. That is why it was important that the whole House supported the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017, which is coming into force in April next year. With that, there will be new burdens funding of over £70 million for local authorities.