Council tenants in Caerphilly County Borough will have paid out £3.7 million in additional rent payments since the so-called ‘Bedroom Tax was introduced three years ago.
The removal of the spare room subsidy, labelled the ‘Bedroom Tax’ by those opposed to it, came as part of the UK Government’s welfare reform in April 2013.
It means those receiving housing benefit who are seen to be ‘under-occupying’ have their housing benefit cut.
The figure of £3.7m was revealed through Freedom of Information requests submitted to Caerphilly County Borough Council by Plaid Cymru.
Cllr Colin Mann, leader of the Plaid Cymru group on Caerphilly Council, said: “These figures show the impact this awful tax is having on many council tenants, who are forced to pay more rent to stay in their homes. This comes at a time when many are struggling to meet food and energy.
“Plaid Cymru has always stood out firmly against the ‘Bedroom Tax’ and have campaigned for its abolition ever since it was introduced.
It should be scrapped but the heartless UK Conservative Government shows no sign of doing so. They seem intent on making the poor poorer.
“There is not the suitable alternative accommodation available for many people so tenants have no choice but to pay extra rent.
“The introduction of the ‘Bedroom Tax’ also meant the authority had to bring in additional support staff.”
Around 1,920 tenants are currently affected by the ‘Bedroom Tax’ with 95 tenants having downsized or moved to alternative council accommodation because of the policy.
A spokeswoman for the Department of Work and Pensions said: “It was wrong that under the old system the taxpayer had to subsidise benefit claimants to live in houses which were larger than they needed. Removing the spare room subsidy has restored fairness to the system, and the number of households subject to a reduction is falling.
“We know that there are cases where people may need extra support and that’s why we have given Caerphilly nearly £1.6m of funding to provide discretionary payments to those that need them.”