Discretionary Disregards Of Pensions

EDM number 682 in 1992-93, proposed by Elfyn Llwyd on 28/10/1992.

That this House notes that local councils currently have the right to use discretionary powers when calculating rent assessments for council tenants, and that, for example, Meirionnydd District Council have been known to disregard war disablement pension when calculating weekly levels; further notes that non-council properties such as housing associations and other forms of private rented accommodation have rent assessed under Benefit Agency rules which disregard the first ú10 of any disability pension paid weekly; congratulates Meirionnydd District Council and others who employ discretionary powers to disregard war disablement pensions; further congratulates both the War Pensions Board and the Abbeyfield Movement for highlighting this discrepancy; believes that the current discrepancy causes a poverty trap for people on disability pensions who move from council housing where a disregard is undertaken as part of rent assessment, to a privately rented property where only the first 10 per cent. of disability pension is disregarded; notes the case of one North Wales pensioner whose weekly balance has been halved as a result of this discrepancy; and calls on the Government to ensure that all rent assessors in the public or private rented sector are given discretionary powers to disregard the whole of the disability pension when assessing weekly rents.

This motion has been signed by a total of 8 MPs.