<P> Among the provisions of the Act are changes to housing benefit which came into force on 1 April 2013 . These changes include an `` under - occupancy penalty '' which reduces the amount of benefit paid to claimants if they are deemed to have too much living space in the property they are renting . Although the Act does not introduce any new direct taxes , this penalty has been characterised by the Labour Party and some in the media as the `` Bedroom Tax '' , attempting to link it with the public debate about the `` Poll Tax '' in the 1990s . Advocating the Act , the Chancellor of the Exchequer ( George Osborne ) stated that the changes would reduce welfare dependency and support working families . </P>
<P> Among the provisions of the Act are changes to housing benefit which came into force on 1 April 2013 . These changes include an `` under - occupancy penalty '' which reduces the amount of benefit paid to claimants if they are deemed to have too much living space in the property they are renting . Although the Act does not introduce any new direct taxes , this penalty has been characterised by the Labour Party and some in the media as the `` Bedroom Tax '' , attempting to link it with the public debate about the `` Poll Tax '' in the 1990s . Advocating the Act , the Chancellor of the Exchequer ( George Osborne ) stated that the changes would reduce welfare dependency and support working families . </P>
when did the bedroom tax come into force
when did the bedroom tax come into force
1 April 2013
1 April 2013