Welfare cuts may prove costly in long run

I WRITE with regards to the government’s drive to reform our welfare system (your report, 27 October).

In 2008 , when I was Stirling Council’s portfolio holder for housing strategy, I introduced a ground-breaking non-
eviction policy for rent arrears. We were the only local authority in the UK to have such a policy in place.

The policy remained in force for over a year, which gave the council time to separate out those suffering genuine hardship and those who were wilful non-payers.

During this period, it came to light that the council had previously evicted vulnerable tenants, some with complex needs and some who were innocent victims of housing benefit complexities.

The council commissioned an audit on those evicted and this concluded that it cost other departments of the council thousands of pounds more to cover the needs of those being evicted than the sum tenants were being put out for.

Scottish Government statistics show that Stirling Council has had one of the lowest 
eviction rates in the country for the past three years as a direct consequence of our non-evictions’ policy.

The SNP administration was praised by Shelter Scotland for introducing the policy.

Shelter staff provided invaluable assistance during the formulation of the policy and I am grateful for its support. While the policy was in force, Shelter officials worked with Stirling Council housing officers to introduce new practices and protocols to ensure that eviction was a last resort. These practices have been implemented by social rented landlords, which has seen a reduction in evictions nationally.

The achievements of this policy are now at grave risk of being undone as a result of the draconian changes to housing benefit that come into force next year.

I predict that rent arrears and evictions will rocket and every local authority in the country will be inundated with homeless presentations.

I would like to see a national campaign begin now to highlight the grave dangers facing social rented tenants and have written to the housing minister suggesting that a special task force is set up to look into this issue as a matter of urgency.

I commented in 2008 that eviction for rent arrears was an attack on the poor and was a futile and costly draconian practice. I repeat these words today.

Alasdair MacPherson

SNP spokesperson for housing strategy,
Stirling Council

Iain Duncan Smith insists that our welfare system should return to the principles of William Beveridge and few would disagree that it is in need of root and branch reform.

Beveridge’s report was revolutionary, but it was not utopian and was specifically intended to discourage fecklessness manifesting his now unfashionable views on eugenics.

The problem is that between Beveridge and today lies the era of Gordon Brown and this is reflected in the government’s major welfare policy: the introduction of a universal credit.

This will make means-
testing the key to welfare and I share my late father’s socialist belief that means tests 
reward inaction, encourage dishonesty and penalise 
savings.

Our present culture of dependency leaves one in five households where no-one has ever worked and two million children growing up with a parent addicted to drugs or alcohol. While I agree with your editorial (27 October) that I have a clear duty as one of the lucky ones to support those in need, I would prefer to do so in a way that does make things worse.

DR JOHN CAMERON

Howard Place
St Andrews, Fife