§ Mr. Andrew Bowdenasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if, further to his reply to the hon. Member for Brighton, Kemptown, Official Report, 8 May, column 371, he can now state (a) what plans he has to set an upper limit to housing benefit losses in November and (b) what recent discussions he has had with local authorities on this matter.
§ Dr. BoysonFollowing discussion with the local authority associations we have decided that the increases in high rent scheme thresholds proposed for November will be deferred until April 1985. About 90,000 people are covered by the high rent scheme, of whom more than half are pensioners. This was announced by my right hon. Friend in his uprating statement on 18 June at columns 20–22 and will protect those who stood to suffer the greatest losses in November.