§ Ms LynneTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the estimated number and percentage of single people aged under 25 years who are in employment and claiming housing benefit; and what assessment he has made of the impact that restricting housing benefit to the average cost of local shared accommodation for single people aged under 25 years will have on(a) labour mobility and (b) work incentives. [4553]
§ Mr. Roger EvansThe estimated number of single childless people under 25 in employment and claiming housing benefit is 29,000. This is 3 per cent. of the total number of single childless people under 25 who live away from the parental home.
Housing benefit will continue to meet in full rents up to the general level of non self-contained accommodation in the locality. It will not prevent those affected from moving in search of employment. It is likely to increase work incentives by improving the position of those in work and above benefit levels, compared with those dependent wholly on benefits.