Axe the Bedroom Tax!

The bedroom tax could affect Welsh households in many different ways. In a country that had nearly 25 000 empty homes in 2011, 4000 people could be made homeless by the bedroom tax according to the body representing tenants in Wales.

It's plain plain to see what's going on. The government is using economic pressure to force the conservative, old fashioned family structure on us. Something quite rightly outdated and irrelevant in today's Wales. The idea of conservatism is defined as; 'a political and social philosophy that promotes retaining traditional social institutions'.
How can the government through economic pressure use the bedroom tax to enforce these traditionalist ideals on us? One example is how the bedroom tax could make it economically impossible for parents to separate. I can not stress how dangerous this is. The sad truth is, domestic violence is common in our patriarchal society and making it even more difficult for parents to split up can result in psychological/physical injury and even death, 2 women every week are killed by an abusive partner in the UK. With this tax, people literally cannot afford to be single parents, even if its the best thing for their children and their own safety and well being. Separated parents who share the care of their children would not both be allowed a 'spare' room for their child/children in their separate homes. There must be a 'main carer' and only that household would count. What do they expect people to do? Expect children when visiting parents to sleep on the floor?

Solidarity with the homeless in Cardiff

There were already signs a month before the start of the Olympics in Cardiff that the police presence in and around Central Square and the railway station had been stepped up. Soon it became clear that the intention was to crack down heavily on street drinkers, beggars and rough sleepers before the Games started, a campaign of social cleansing to improve the image of the city for Olympic visitors. This only seemed to be confirmed by the indecent haste, just days before the first event, that the homeless were moved from their temporary hostel accommodation at the edge of the city centre to a brand new, purpose-built - but still unfinished - hostel complex safely just out of sight. A number of homeless people were then subjected to CRASBOs and excluded from the city centre area, and several were taken into custody for breaking the terms of those orders.



The local press published a timely article just before the start of the Games. A local jeweller David Hughes-Lewis, on behalf of Cardiff Retail Partnership, argued for using the 1824 Vagrancy Act against beggars and homeless people so that tourists would not be put off.

“If this is a law which is still in existence and South Wales Police aren’t making use of it then the question is why? If it’s there to be used and the Met are using it then so should we.”