Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the oral contribution by the Minister of State for Disabled People of 5 September 2014, Official Report, column 554, what the evidential basis is for his statement that the Affordable Homes Bill would cost about £1 billion of public expenditure.

The calculation of the £1 billion cost of the Affordable Homes Bill was made on Thursday 4^th September by Departmental Officials following an assessment of the potential effects of the provisions set out in the draft Bill at Second Reading.

The potential cost was estimated using administrative data (Single Housing Benefit Extract) and the department’s policy simulation model.