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Scottish Charity Register No. SC043760

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Landmark ruling on HB for Big Issue sellers

March 06 2012
Romanian woman can claim housing benefit because she is self-employed

 

There was tabloid outrage this month after a social security tribunal ruled that a Romanian woman could be given the right to housing benefit - in addition to £25,000 in other benefits that she receives.

The court’s decision hinged on the fact that the woman, 27-year-old Firuta Vasile, worked for the Big Issue, so was technically “self-employed”. Romanian citizens are allowed to claim housing benefit only if they work in highly-skilled or specialised jobs, or are self-employed. Ms Vasile convinced the tribunal that she was in the second category, as she bought copies of the magazine with her own money to try and sell them for a profit.

“I can keep half of the money I take and I usually make around £100 per week,” she said. “This isn’t enough to meet all my family’s needs so I asked the council for housing benefit to help with my rent. My claim was turned down. I was told that because I am Romanian I could not get benefits unless I have a job or I am in self-employment. They said work for the Big Issue didn’t count. I got legal support and was helped with an appeal.”

Ms Vasile, who has four children and is a carer for her disabled son, was widely criticised after the decision, as she already claims child benefit, tax credit, disability living allowance and carer’s allowance. However, welfare benefits advisor, Andy King, who represented Ms Vasile at the tribunal, defended the result: “This is a victory for people struggling to work to support their families,” he said. “Anyone who thinks selling the Big Issue on a British street in winter is a soft option should have a go themselves.”

Her case does have implications for other Romanian and Bulgarian Big Issue sellers in Britain, who could cite Ms Vasile’s case in support of a bid for housing benefit. However, next year the stricter rulings over Romania and Bulgaria’s membership of the EU are to be relaxed - and future claimants may not need to take their claims all the way to the courts.

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