Sharp rise in rent and mortgage relief claims
The statistics show the number of people in the process of claiming some kind of rent supplement under the supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) has climbed from 75,163 last December to 84,666 by the end of March.
Just two years ago it stood at around 60,000, but community welfare officers said it would not be surprising if it passed 90,000 by the end of 2009, resulting in a doubling of claimants in just two years.
