Church of England passes motion against bedroom tax
- 19 Nov
The Church of England's General Synod has unanimously passed a motion which expresses concern about the impact of the bedroom tax.
The motion on the bedroom tax has been passed with 249 in favour, none against and three abstentions, reports 24dash.
It stated: "That this Synod, noting the rise in the number and seriousness of reported concerns about the impact of the Spare Room Subsidy (the 'Bedroom Tax') on the vulnerable and others, call on the Mission and Public Affairs Council:
(a) to evaluate the findings of research into the effects of removing the Spare Room Subsidy across the country; and
(b) to promote with Her Majesty's Government and partners from the social and housing sctor ways of ensuring access to suitable local housing for all, especially for those who are vulnerable without increasing levels of debt."
The report stated: "Our position is that, in the principle of the tax we see a deep unfairness and almost a cultural disregard for the lives of the poor and a devaluing of commitment to place and community which are so important to the Common Good and have always been a core consideration of the Church of England. In its implementation it is ineffective and unjust and the impact is leading to increased debt with significant negative effects on mental health. Sitting alongside the uncoupling of identified need from level of support, as executed by the Benefit Cap, the chaos of target driven Work Capability Assessments and seemingly target driven punitive sanctions on unemployed claimants (4 weeks of no benefits as a minimum), it also appears to completely undermine the concept of a ‘Big Society'. The bedroom tax voices a disregard for the intimate unfolding of the lives of the most vulnerable in a way that would never be done to the more wealthy and for this reason is unjust. It also appears to be either ignorant of or attach no value to the dynamics of community over time."
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