HOUSING CUTS WILL DRIVE PEOPLE FURTHER INTO POVERTY!!

Byrne demands to know how many people in Strabane and Omagh are to be affected to by the changes to Local Housing Allowance...

Joe Byrne MLA for West Tyrone demanded information from the Minister for Social Development regarding the impact of changes to Local Housing Allowance for those aged between 25 and 34 in the Strabane and Omagh areas.

According to a Housing Executive investigation to identify the number of Housing Benefit claimants to be affected by the changes to Local Housing Allowance for persons between the ages of 24 and 35 years, 155 claimants will be affected in Omagh and 175 will be affected in Strabane.

This is a very high number considering the population of the areas. This cut in housing benefit only serves to increase the financial hardship placed upon areas already suffering a great deal in the current economic climate.

Byrne contends that these proposals have been put forward without any regard for the socio-economic implications on the individuals and areas affected. They are simply cost cutting measures imposed by a government, unaware and unconcerned about the daily reality of life for claimants in the Strabane and Omagh areas.

The Member for West Tyrone calls for proposals that take into consideration the fact that Northern Ireland has had, and continues to have, a very different social and economic situation to that of other areas. The proposed cuts to housing benefits and social welfare in general will affect the most vulnerable in our society, lessening and in some cases withdrawing the social safety, upon which, a large number of people in our community survive.   

Byrne rejects the imposition of a Westminster model on Northern Ireland, and calls for legislation which takes into consideration the economic realities, both past and present, of life in the six counties.