This Just Isn’t Working

David Ashford says simply increasing the thresholds for access to public sector housing could do more harm than good and wants the entire policy reviewed.

The DoI is intending to increase thresholds by 14.5% to reflect the rate of inflation between September 2018 and 2022.

Under the new thresholds, a single applicant with no children could earn up to £34,500, while joint applicants can earn up to £38,000, a rise from £30,000 and £33,000.

The maximum income for a single applicant with three or more children will also increase to £47,000, while a joint assessment for people with three or more children would be £50,500.

While the DoI says it is doing this to reflect increases in wages and follows a Tynwald motion that said the maximum thresholds needed to be reviewed as a matter of urgency.

However, Douglas North MHK David Ashford says that from his point of view, the thresholds ‘just aren’t working in their current format’.

He added: ‘All DoI appears to be doing is amending the amounts in line with inflation but addressing any of the underlying issues such as the cliff edges where someone earning even small amounts over the threshold end up with the same rent increase as someone at the top end of the threshold.

‘There are tenants that are also facing eviction whose circumstances aren’t taken into account such as being only a few years from retirement where their income level falls drastically. I’m also aware of tenants who have decided that one of them will quit work in order to try and stay under the thresholds, all at a time when government is crying out for people to work longer and remain in the work place. The whole policy is having the opposite affect to what government seems to be trying to achieve elsewhere.’

While the DoI will bring its new thresholds to May’s Tynwald sitting, Mr Ashford will seek to halt this and instead look a much larger range of issues with public section housing, including the current terms and conditions of five year tenancies.

He also wants all applicable legislation reviewed including, but not limited to policy on: when proceedings for eviction should be commenced; what consideration should be given to the age of tenants at the time of review; how adult children’s income should be treated; and how those in receipt of supporting benefits such as carer’s allowance should be treated.

Mr Ashford also wants to DoI to report to Tynwa;d by the last day of October this year and move that ‘as a matter of policy, no public sector landlord should commence any new legal action seeking eviction relating to any five-year tenancy review until such time as the Department’s report has been debated by Tynwald’.