FIGURES released on the first anniversary of the ‘Bedroom Tax’ show that over 4,000 people in Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan have been hit by the ‘cruel and unfair’ tax.

Cardiff South and Penarth MP Stephen Doughty, AM Vaughan Gething, and Vale of Glamorgan Councillor Christopher Elmore have together highlighted the impact on local families, and reaffirmed Labour’s pledge to scrap the tax if voted back in government.

Figures compiled by the DWP, for May-November 2013, show that 3,015 people in Cardiff and 996 in the Vale of Glamorgan were affected by the Bedroom Tax. Across Wales as a whole, more than 32,000 people have been hit.

Stephen Doughty MP said: "The Bedroom Tax is not only causing social misery and hardship - with households already £1600 on average worse off since David Cameron entered Downing Street – but it doesn't actually save money. The housing bill is rising, not falling. Figures in the Chancellor’s own Budget have shown the housing benefit bill will continue rising, with an increase of £1billion over the next five years.”

Vaughan Gething AM added: "The Bedroom Tax is a cruel and unfair measure that has hit the disabled and low-to-middle income families hard. It has already forced thousands of families into debt and is frequently given as a reason why more families are forced to seek help from food banks."

Councillor Christopher Elmore, Labour’s Candidate for the Vale of Glamorgan, said: “Britain can’t afford another year of David Cameron and Nick Clegg’s cruel and costly tax on bedrooms. It’s time for the government to ditch the Bedroom Tax. If they don’t, then a Labour government will.”