Dear all,

I have serious concerns about this Governments take on housing benefit and I know that it was something that was discussed at length on this list earlier this year. 

I have sent the following to Nick Clegg (assuming Cameron is a lost cause - rightly or wrongly) and also to the Guardian.

I just heard Mark Field on BBC news responding fairly cheerfully to the accusation that it could lead to the eviction of 9000 people in his borough -suggesting that perhaps these people should leave London if they can't contribute.

For your interest I include it below. I am no longer at the LSE but haven't worked out how to switch this over to my new email address which is [log in to unmask] should anyone wish to get in contact directly.

Many thanks,

Anne


<<Dear Mr Clegg,

I am concerned by your recent comments as reported in the Daily Mail (no doubt cut for extra impact but nonetheless - concerning). As a life long Labour supporter it probably goes without saying that I have no truck with the current round of benefit cuts nor the coalition's attitude of portraying benefit claimants as 'scroungers'. Objectifying the poor is never a pretty ideological trait.

I understand that it must rankle to pay money to private housing landlords. Indeed I find the whole thing sickening too. The process is fundamental to the current cost of private property and the shortage in affordable housing  (to rent or buy). Government benefits help to bolster money hungry landlords and extortionate rents. However, you cannot cap housing benefit without tackling the problem of unfair high rents. If you wish to have an unfettered market then you can not curb benefits without forcing those on benefits from the poorest housing in the most expensive areas. If you do so then you make areas of Britain posh ghettos. You will go down in history as the man (along with your cohort) who killed social diversity and put the nail in the coffin of social mobility (what remains of it).

These areas will also be posh ghettos without the services of the working poor who service the rich - the cleaners, waiters, waitresses, nannies, care assistants etc.

To pursue a capping of housing benefit you would have to simultaneously introduce a fair (a watch word of your administration) rent policy. In addition you would have to embark on a radical and ambitious social housing building programme - or a compulsory purchase of large swathes of British housing in diverse locations to rent at realistic amounts. This last policy may provide (finally) a housing market that is realistically priced - and would probably save money in the long term.

Considering the banking bail out and the amount of mortgages that are held by these banks - the British public are now the largest owner of housing in Britain. As such I would suspect we have some under utilised power over these larger social processes for the first time in a generation. Clearly, some radical rethinking needs to occur before you become the man who cleansed British cities of social diversity.

One final point it would do you well to remember that it is not just those who are 'benefit scroungers' or as I prefer to call them - the poor - who claim housing benefit but also the working and as you like to put it - law abiding - citizens. For the increasing number of 'working poor' the need for such benefits will only increase over the next five years.

With a great sadness in my heart that you could objectify people to such a degree.

Dr A Brunton>>





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