Groups unite to fight rent supplement cut

Groups opposing the cut in rent supplement, which comes into force on Monday, are to step up their campaign next week.

This comes as a representative of community welfare officers, said they do not agree with the cut and that it will cause "terrible hardship".

Mr Pat Bolger, secretary of the eastern regional health division of IMPACT and spokesman for that union's CWOs, said the degree of discretion being afforded to officers was unclear.

"Officers will have to be able to stand over every decision or face sanctions, and the letter of the regulation states that people now have to be renting for six months." He said he was in no doubt that his members would be delivering bad news to clients from Monday "that we don't agree with, and which will cause real hardship".

The Minister responsible for the cut, Minister for Social and Family Affairs, Ms Coughlan, defended the cut yesterday. She said it would not cause hardship, that CWOs would retain discretion in awarding the benefit in emergencies and that those defined as "homeless" would continue to be entitled to the supplement. The cut to rent supplement entitlement was announced in the November Book of Estimates as part of the Department's drive to save €55.8 million this year. Signed into law in December, the regulation says applicants for the benefit must be renting from their own means for 183 days before being eligible.

The 13 organisations - among them Threshold, the Simon Community, the One Parent Exchange Network (OPEN) and the Irish Refugee Council - which came together to oppose the cut will be joined by other national organisations in renewing their campaign on Monday. They say the cut will inevitably lead to homelessness.

"It will make already vulnerable people even more vulnerable," said Ms Frances Byrne, chairwoman of OPEN.

Ms Coughlan said, however, those opposed to the cut were "incorrect". She said it was wrong that local authorities were not providing long-term housing to people and were leaving it to her Department to accommodate them on a long-term basis.

"The goal will be that by March 2007 that SWA [Supplementary Welfare Assistance] is not being used to provide housing assistance on a long-term basis. What we are looking at is different types of housing provision."