asked the Minister for the Environment if he will make a statement concerning the situation whereby a very large number of low income persons and families in receipt of social welfare payments have their social welfare benefits included in full in the assessment of differential rent, while under the current scheme such income as bonus payments, shift work payments, overtime earnings and other emoluments additional to basic earnings are excluded from calculation of differential rent; if he is aware that this policy decision of the Government has given rise to major anomalies and injustice in the current national differential rent scheme as currently agreed; and if he will undertake a study in relation to these injustices which have emerged under the current system.
Written Answers. - Differential Rent Scheme.
Arising out of the annual revision of rent for local authority dwellings an amended scheme was introduced to take effect from 1 May last.
Under previous schemes certain anomalies existed in so far as the assessment for rent purposes of the income of social welfare recipients was concerned. Some incomes from social welfare payments were assessed at 50 per cent while others were assessed at 100 per cent. To obviate these anomalies all social welfare payments are now being assessed at the full rate.
To offset the effects of any rent increases which this procedure might entail and to assist those in the lower income groups—particularly social welfare pensioners and lower paid workers—substantial increases were made in the amounts of assessable incomes to which the various rent fractions apply and also in the graded scale of allowances for principal earners while at the same time the rent fraction at the lowest band of the graded scale was reduced from one-twelfth to one-twentieth.
There has been no change in the current scheme as regards the income to be taken into account for rent purposes in the case of employed tenants. As in all schemes since 1973 the rent of an employed tenant is calculated on basic income, which is, in general, the normal weekly rate of remuneration exclusive of overtime, shift-allowances and bonus payments.
In the case of all tenants, children's allowances, supplementary welfare allowances, redundancy payments, disabled persons allowances, lump sum compensation payments, etc. are disregarded as income for the purpose of the calculation of rents.
I am satisfied that the scheme as revised is fair and equitable to both local authorities and tenants and is designed to ensure that no tenant is required to pay a rent that he cannot reasonably afford.
The scheme is reviewed annually and any amendments of the terms of the scheme considered necessary are made.
It should be noted that in cases of genuine hardship it is open to local authorities to accept from a tenant for a specified period a lesser sum for rent than that required under the scheme.