News from Labour Matters

Income Support for Mortgage Interest strengthened

The FT Westminster blog reports that “due to a presentational balls-up, one housing policy – arguably the most substantial of today’s package – has been widely overlooked.

This is the strengthening of support for people who lose their jobs to keep paying their mortgages: Income Support for Mortgage Interest (ISMI).

Until the mid-1990s this was available for a large proportion of the public; it was axed by Peter Lilley in a bid to get people to take out their own employment insurance. That idea was largely a failure.

Now the government has strengthened the safety net again; up to a point. The waiting period for receiving ISMI (after losing your job) will shorten from 39 weeks to 13 weeks and the capital limit for claims will be raised from £100,000 to £175,000. The cost of the change will be an estimated £100m.

I’m told this could help roughly 20,000 people over two years.” Read the full article.

Other news from Labour Matters

• Southampton Labour release alternative 'Budget for Fairness' - 6 February 2012
• "Bleak unemployment figures are bad news" says John Denham - 12 October 2011
• Westminster Council to cut Taxicard budget by £500,000 a year - 11 August 2011