# Hundreds of thousands more people to be pushed into poverty by Labour’s freeze on housing benefit

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/hundreds-of-thousands-more-people-to-be-pushed-into-poverty-by-labours-freeze-on-housing-benefit/
- Published: 2026-11-02T12:06:22+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-02T12:39:00+00:00
- Original publisher: The Independent (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/burnham-homelessness-rough-sleeping-housing-benefit-freeze-budget-b3077339.html
- Topics: Politics

## Key points

- Charities say the housing benefit freeze could deepen poverty for nearly 200,000 families.
- Local Housing Allowance is 23.3 per cent below affordable rents.
- The groups want £1.7bn in funding and an inflation-linked rent cap.

## Summary

Charities warn that keeping the freeze on housing benefit at the Budget could push nearly 200,000 families into poverty or deeper poverty and undermine Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s pledge to end rough sleeping. They say housing support is falling behind rising rents, leaving some renters unable to afford their homes and increasing the risk of homelessness.

Local Housing Allowance, which is intended to cover at least the cheapest 30 per cent of local rents, has been frozen since April 2024. By October, it fell 23.3 per cent short of affordable rents, equivalent to about £200 a month in London and £100 elsewhere. Joseph Rowntree Foundation research suggests that by 2029 private renters could be £700 worse off annually, with 50,000 entering poverty, 60,000 deep poverty and 80,000 very deep poverty; 19 organisations are calling for £1.7bn to end the freeze and for an inflation-linked rent cap.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.