Thousands of Greater Manchester residents are sinking into debt just two months after the bedroom tax began, the M.E.N can reveal.
Housing bosses say many of their tenants who had their housing payments cut on April 1 are already in arrears.
One housing association says up to 70 per cent of its affected residents are now behind on their rent.
Housing campaigners have described the situation as a ‘ticking timebomb’ – and warn the region’s courts could soon be flooded with eviction cases.
Town hall bosses elsewhere in the country, including Brighton, have vowed not to evict their tenants because of the bedroom tax – which cuts rent payments of those with ‘unoccupied rooms’ by up to 25pc.
Housing associations and town halls in Greater Manchester say they will do everything in their power to help residents balance their finances and get out of debt. But privately, many local housing bosses believe the no-eviction approach is unrealistic.
Dozens of affected tenants staged a rally against the controversial tax in Manchester’s Piccadilly Gardens over the weekend.
New Charter Housing in Tameside said 70pc of its 1,600 households affected by the bedroom tax were in arrears with rent – with tenants losing up to £88 a month.
Manchester Evening News
