Campaigners against the Government’s proposed ‘Bedroom Tax’ gathered on College Green on Saturday 16th March as part of a national day of action against the Bedroom Tax.
Labour’s Bristol West Parliamentary candidate Thangam Debbonaireorganised the rally, with hundreds turning out to hear speakers opposing the Bedroom Tax and sign a petition calling for its repeal.
Click here and here to see coverage of the event.
The rally followed a visit by Jack Dromey, Labour’s Shadow Housing Minister, to meet with people affected by the Bedroom Tax and discuss their situation and their feelings about the impact the Bedroom Tax will have, and Jan Royall, Leader of the Opposition in the House of Lords, recently came to meet with Marion Khan, one of those Jack spoke to who is being hit by the Bedroom Tax. With the help of Thangam Debbonaire and the Bristol Debt Advice Centre, Marion has now been able to secure support that means she can pay the extra cost to stay in her home – but thousands of people across Bristol aren’t as fortunate. Many of them need their spare room for a carer to stay or so their children or grandchildren can stay over, and the fact is there aren’t enough smaller properties in Bristol for people to move into.
The Mayor did listen to the concerns we have been raising and has pledged not to evict anyone in the short-term as a result of the Bedroom Tax, but thousands of the least-well off households in Bristol will still be forced to pay 
more to stay in their homes. So we will continue to work with residents across Bristol to keep up the pressure on the Government to scrap the Bedroom Tax.
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