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The government is planning for a huge surge in emergency housing payments for hard-up benefit claimants struggling to pay rent.

The budget for Discretionary Housing Payments will rise by a quarter in England and Wales next year - from £140m this year to £180m in 2020/21.

The extra £40m will be used to "tackle affordability pressures" suffered specifically by private renters, today's mini spending review confirmed.

The hike sparked fears the Tories are offering a sticking plaster to problems in the benefit system, including Universal Credit which has previously been blamed for rent arrears.

A study by the Residential Landlords Association last month claimed more than half of private landlords who let to tenants on UC (54%) saw them fall into arrears, mostly after the tenant moved to UC.

David Smith, the association's Policy Director, said today: "Increasing discretionary payments are a sign of a system that is not working.

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"Rather than responding to emergency situations as they arise, the Government should be preventing them in the first place.

"It is therefore disappointing that the Chancellor said nothing about boosting the supply of homes to rent to improve affordability, provided no pledges to end the Local Housing Allowance Freeze and was silent on the need to end the five week wait before Universal Credit claimants can receive their first payment."

DHPs are stop-gap funds to help struggling claimants who don't have enough cash to pay rent.

They are dished out by councils, and claimants can include people hit by the Bedroom Tax or Benefit Cap. They are not specific to Universal Credit.

After complaints the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) introduced several measures to soften the blow of the five-week wait for UC.

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They include two weeks of 'run-on' payments of housing benefits, and advances that can be worth a full month's benefit.

But campaigners criticised Chancellor Sajid Javid today for not doing more to fix UC's "brutal rollout".

Emma Revie, chief executive of foodbank charity the Trussell Trust, which runs hundreds of food banks across the country, said: "This Spending Review was a lost opportunity. As the country looks to the future, we need our Government to put policy ahead of politics.

"Increasing living costs, inadequate benefit levels, and the five-week wait for Universal Credit are all leaving people without enough money in their pockets for the most basic costs."

Jon Sparkes, Chief Executive of Crisis, added: “Right now there are thousands of people homeless up and down the country and even more in vulnerable circumstances, on the brink of homelessness.

"While the additional funding announced today is a welcome step, today’s Spending Review is ultimately a missed opportunity for Government to be serious in tackling the fundamental issues that cause homelessness in the first place.

“Every day through our work we hear from people whose Housing Benefit simply doesn’t cover the cost of their rent, leaving them under immense financial pressure and at genuine risk of homelessness.

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"We need significant investment commitments from Government to genuinely help struggling families to keep the roof over their head."

Separately, the DWP is being handed an extra £36m to "ensure DWP decision-making is accurate".

The £36m - which comes after three-quarters of sickness and disability benefit tribunals ruled against the Department - will also ensure "the application processes are straightforward and accessible".

And it will help pay for a new, independent Serious Case Panel.

A further £23m will fund a range of measures including support for people with complex needs moving to UC, the Treasury said.