City Hall proposed that families with children living in these areas be exempt from the housing cap and asked the government to ring-fence most of the Discretionary Housing Payments for London.

BBC: London's homeless families could rise by 5,000

Another new Labour man, Tom Copley, pushed the mayor on what he was going to do to mitigate the effects of the housing benefit cap in London.

BBC: Boris Johnson quizzed by London Assembly

The Conservative-controlled council said the change was necessary because of government plans to cap housing benefit.

BBC: Kent council plans changes to council housing criteria