Lord Freud
Minister for Welfare Reform
Department for Work and Pensions
Caxton House
Tothill Street
London SW1H 9NA

29^th November 2012

Dear David,

I am writing on behalf of a number of constituents, to urge the Government not to remove housing benefit from those under 25.

I believe that such an arbitrary move would be incredibly dangerous and have a devastating impact on young people, not just in my constituency of Brighton Pavilion but throughout the country.

Many young people simply can’t live at home. According to Crisis, of those young people accepted as homeless by their local council last year, one-third were aged between 16-24.

Some 10,000 vulnerable young people put their homelessness down to the fact their parents could not or would not house them. 

Factors such as the risk of violence and domestic abuse are also at play and given the under-reporting rates I am far from satisfied that a simple exemption would protect the vulnerable.

Those who have fled intolerable home situations and are, for example, living in supported housing projects such hostels, refuges or foyers desperately need those options yet such projects rely on housing benefit as an important part of their funding.

Crisis has also found that more than half of under 25 year olds currently on housing benefit are bringing up children, whilst 28,000 are sick or disabled.

Is the Government really willing to put them at increased risk of homelessness?

Orphans and care leavers in particular have limited options and need to be eligible to claim housing benefit if they want to avoid ending up on the streets.

This proposal would also jeopardise efforts to get young people into – and keep them in – work. Crisis reports that there are 66,000 young people employed but receiving housing benefit due to low wages.

All of them may be forced to leave their job and home if the Government’s plans are allowed to go ahead.

The Office of National Statistics found that two thirds of young people on Job Seekers allowance currently find work within six months but if under 25s are forced to move away from jobs because that cannot get housing support there is a risk they will be consigned to long term unemployment.

The Prime Minister may well have painted a picture of young people receiving housing benefit and unwilling to work but this is not backed up by the evidence and is a poor basis for policy making.

Youth homelessness is already on the rise, and spiralling out of control.

In London, the number of 18-25 year olds sleeping rough has gone up by 90% in the last two years. In constituencies such as mine, with a relatively large and expensive private rented sector, any cuts to housing benefit- let alone a complete removal- would undoubtedly lead to more young people sleeping on the streets.

The Royal Bank of Scotland has found spiralling student debt will make house deposits increasingly out of reach, and research by the Office of National Statistics has revealed under 25s have been disproportionately affected by escalating unemployment.

The Government is targeting those already hard hit by their austerity programme – and further disadvantaging a whole generation of young people.

I hope you will abandon this irresponsible ideologically driven proposal and I look forward to your response.

Yours sincerely,

Caroline Lucas MP, Brighton Pavilion

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