ReClaim, a local grassroots campaigning group who work nationally, has produced a bedroom tax toolkit which is here. It contains what we know works; simple one-page standard letters for the following:-
- The pre 1996 bedroom tax exemption letter that many already using
- A standard letter to use for appealing your current bedroom tax decision on room usage and should be used for the 2014/15 bedroom tax decisions expected in March
- A standard letter to launch a Parliamentary Ombudsman complaint over the DWP’s maladministration with their bedroom tax cock up over the pre 1996 issue
- DHP standard letter when your local council seeks to errantly claim back the DHP you sold your soul and your dignity to receive – they have no authority to do this whatsoever.
It contains much more including who YOU can contact and lobby (see pages 8 and 9) to prevent IDS and the DWP changing the legislation without consultation or any debate – covering up their cock up and in such a despotic way.
IDS is planning to change the law without debate or consultation by laying a statutory instrument before parliament on March 3rd 2014 – just four weeks away
The toolkit also contains primary research data of the first 250 or so cases held by ReClaim (see page 2) over just who has had the bedroom tax imposed on them unlawfully:
- Two thirds are women yet DWP is not planning any gender impact assessment
- 87% are in receipt of DLA or ESA yet DWP is not planning any disability impact assessment
- 1 in 6 are carers for family members yet IDS is not going to consult any carers…
…instead IDS is just going ahead in his stubborn and despotic way and will change the law without debate or consultation. Unless of course we ALL make so much of a fuss that we make it politically untenable for IDS to do that and force a debate in Parliament and/or get this referred to the Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC). We should not have to rely on this being annulled after it is implemented
- Do you want IDS or any politician to be able to change the law at will without any form of democratic oversight?
- Do you care that 40,000 + households containing 100,000 men women and children, many of whom are disabled and long term sick will have to go without one meal a day just to keep a roof over their heads?
If you don’t care then do nothing and perhaps carry on believing that Benefit Street is reality.
However if you do care then we have a four week window to get all those opposed to the pernicious bedroom tax to lobby everyone they know; four weeks to make as much fuss as possible so as to get IDS and the DWP to behave in a democratic way.
Lobby your MP, your councillor, your union, your local and national womens and disability lobbies and all that you can. A list is suggested and included in the toolkit on pages 8 and 9 but this is not inclusive. Contact as many people as you can.
This is much more than just whether you agree with the bedroom tax pre 1996 exemption or not, this is about a politician being incompetent and unlawfully taking away £25m per year from women, the disabled and carers…and then covering up his incompetence by legislating without any debate after the fact to make this offensive incompetence lawful.
I’ll say that again IDS and the DWP have taken away £25m this year, at least, away from vulnerable people with the unlawful bedroom tax deductions on those that are exempt by law.
That is just a mere ‘loophole’ to DWP and it is a small number they claim. It’s not a loophole and with those affected in error not being able to fit inside Wembley Stadium its not a small number either. It is a monumental cock up.
Imagine if 40,000 mortgage payers had almost lost their homes due to a government cock up! That would be headline news in all the newspapers, the lead story on TV and radio broadcasts and blanket coverage right across the media. Yet because this has only affected the social tenant the media is silent on the issue!
Joe Public sees all bedroom tax tenants as scroungers and workshy as that is how this government likes to portray them. Yet over one million people who are working have wages that low that they qualify and receive housing benefit. It was only 650,000 in May 2010 and so that number has increased 60% since the coalition came to office. That presumably is also a small number according to the DWP…and it is in comparison to the numbers having to use food banks.
How many times has Cameron said at PMQ’s that disabled people are exempt from the bedroom tax? At least three times yet they are not exempt. Cameron is simply making it up as he goes along.
IDS and the Tories are legislating in this underhand way to make more disabled persons liable for the bedroom tax! That is also a national scandal and outrage
The campaign toolkit details some actions that all can easily follow including on Friday 28 February and Saturday 1st March a call to lobby your local MP who tend to hold constituent surgeries on those days. And so much more. Saturday 5th April is a national day of protest in all regions over the bedroom tax and no doubt more will be publicised about this shortly
Yet there is so much more. Reclaim will feature in a Channel 4 Dispatches programme on Monday 10th February all about the pre 1996 exempt issue or the £25m unlawful bedroom tax deductions IDS and DWP have already made from these vulnerable families.
We are aware of so many other activities going on by so many other grassroots groups and far too many to mention and please include these as comments and we will publicise in later versions of the campaign toolkit. This toolkit is a living document that will expand and have further editions. It is about what everyone can do and what we believe everyone should do.
Yet it is all about what we cannot allow IDS to do and some ideas on how we can stop this despot and zealot.
The slogans of enough is enough abound in the bedroom tax and have since day one. Yet now with the unlawful imposition of the bedroom tax to 100,000 men women and children and a legally binding definition of ‘bedroom’ which DWP refused to make the bedroom tax is ripe for challenge, and that challenge is in your hands reader.
You can stop this government making more disabled and long-term sick people liable for the bedroom tax. You can stop twice as many women as men being affected. You can stop carers for family members losing the roof over their heads.
Many of the answers as to how are in the toolkit, many more will be added and many more campaigns and challenges to the bedroom tax will emerge and some from surprising quarters too and some from organisations that have to date sat on the fence or on the wrong side of it.
Time to be counted and time to stand up and do your bit to get rid of the bedroom tax and this toolkit gives some ideas on how.
If you have a campaign event or idea then please put in the comments below or email thereclaimgroup@aol.co.uk and we will gladly publicise and promote it. All of the information and standard template letters are there for you to use freely and feel free to distribute widely.
If you think IDS should be allowed to change a law he has broken without any debate and without consultation and to spare his political blushes and impose that back on 100,000+ vulnerable men women and children then do nothing.
If you have read this far you will not want that to happen. If they were mortgage payers this outrageous state of affairs would not even be considered yet because this is the lowly and ‘small’ social tenant he thinks he can get away with it. Let’s prove his wrong!
ReClaim
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