THE MP for Bury North was the only person to vote against a Bill which aimed to scrap the “bedroom tax”.

David Nuttall voted against a bill put forward by Labour MP Ian Lavery, which called on the spare room subsidy, dubbed the ‘bedroom tax’ by critics, to be axed.

In a Commons vote on the Bill last Wednesday, 226 MPs voted for Mr Lavery’s 10-minute rule Bill —which gives an opportunity for MPs to speak for 10 minutes on any given issue in an attempt to introduce legislation — while just Mr Nuttall, pictured, opposed.

Mr Nuttall’s colleagues in the governing coalition parties abstained, and the backbenches of the Tory ranks were not well attended.

Although the Bill was approved, it is very unlikely to become law, as it has been allocated a limited amount of parliamentary time.

Speaking in the Commons, Mr Lavery said that his Bill sought to “restore justice for up to 660,000 people” across the country.

He said: “They have been inhumanely let down by the government’s reforms to housing benefit in the social sector.

“The tax has caused heartache and devastation to thousands of residents up and down this country.”

Under the policy, residents receive a 14 per cent reduction in housing benefit if they have a spare room, or a 25 per cent cut if they have two spare rooms.

Bury Council previously said that 2,513 people across the borough are affected by the policy.

After the debate, Mr Nuttall said: “This country has to start living within its means and this means taking tough and difficult decisions. As we have seen with a growing economy and more people in work able to provide for themselves and their families, the government’s economic plan is working.

“It is only by having a strong and growing economy that the nation will be able to afford to pay for our NHS, the police, our Armed Forces, our schools and all the other public services people rely on.

“Labour demonstrated today that they are the same old Labour who want to spend more on welfare and borrow more, leaving more debts for the next generation.”