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| 'Bedroom tax' lorry death was suicide, coroner rules | 'Bedroom tax' lorry death was suicide, coroner rules |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| A woman who walked in front of a lorry on a motorway after leaving a note blaming government benefit changes took her own life, a coroner has ruled. | A woman who walked in front of a lorry on a motorway after leaving a note blaming government benefit changes took her own life, a coroner has ruled. |
| Stephanie Bottrill, 53, from Solihull, died in May last year after climbing over a safety barrier on to the M6. | |
| Her family said she was worried about losing £20 a week through so-called "bedroom tax" housing benefit changes. | Her family said she was worried about losing £20 a week through so-called "bedroom tax" housing benefit changes. |
| Her brother said she had tried to kill herself before and criticised her stance over the benefit changes. | Her brother said she had tried to kill herself before and criticised her stance over the benefit changes. |
| Mrs Bottrill lived alone in a three-bedroom house and would have received less in housing benefit by being subject to what the government calls the removal of a "spare room subsidy", branded the "bedroom tax" by critics. | |
| In her suicide letter, Mrs Bottrill told her family she could no longer cope. | In her suicide letter, Mrs Bottrill told her family she could no longer cope. |
| "It's my life, the only people to blame are the government," she wrote, before walking to the motorway, a short distance from her home in Meriden Drive, Kingshurst. | "It's my life, the only people to blame are the government," she wrote, before walking to the motorway, a short distance from her home in Meriden Drive, Kingshurst. |
| A post-mortem examination found she died as a result of multiple injuries. | A post-mortem examination found she died as a result of multiple injuries. |
| A police investigation concluded there was nothing the lorry driver could have done to avoid Mrs Bottrill. | A police investigation concluded there was nothing the lorry driver could have done to avoid Mrs Bottrill. |
| The coroner for Birmingham and Solihull, Zafar Siddique, said: "Given the evidence of notes left of her intention, I am satisfied she intended to take her own life." | The coroner for Birmingham and Solihull, Zafar Siddique, said: "Given the evidence of notes left of her intention, I am satisfied she intended to take her own life." |
| Mrs Bottrill, a grandmother and former postal worker, had agreed to see her GP the day before her death after her concerned daughter-in-law telephoned to make the appointment. | |
| Mr Siddique, summing up the evidence of Dr Bindu Nair, said Mrs Bottrill had been "clear-headed" and given a frank account of a history of anxiety. | Mr Siddique, summing up the evidence of Dr Bindu Nair, said Mrs Bottrill had been "clear-headed" and given a frank account of a history of anxiety. |
| "She was still coming to terms about whether to move or have to pay extra to stay in her current property," said Dr Nair's report. | "She was still coming to terms about whether to move or have to pay extra to stay in her current property," said Dr Nair's report. |
| It added that Ms Bottrill was "happy to move but it was the way in which she was forced to make a decision" which had caused her "considerable anxiety and stress". | |
| "She felt she wasn't given the time to make her decision". | "She felt she wasn't given the time to make her decision". |
| Mrs Bottrill's brother, Kevin Owens, said he could not be sure his sister's actions were entirely due to her housing situation. | Mrs Bottrill's brother, Kevin Owens, said he could not be sure his sister's actions were entirely due to her housing situation. |
| "Much has been written about bedroom tax pushing her - it wasn't, because prior to that she'd attempted suicide before and that hadn't been reported before. | "Much has been written about bedroom tax pushing her - it wasn't, because prior to that she'd attempted suicide before and that hadn't been reported before. |
| "It might have been the catalyst to push her but was it just an excuse she was looking for?" | "It might have been the catalyst to push her but was it just an excuse she was looking for?" |
| Mr Owens told reporters at the inquest that his sister "wasn't prepared to give somebody else a chance" of a larger home. | Mr Owens told reporters at the inquest that his sister "wasn't prepared to give somebody else a chance" of a larger home. |
| "It's terrible that people in this country are cramped into one and two-bedroom flats with children while other people sit on three-bedroom houses," he said. | "It's terrible that people in this country are cramped into one and two-bedroom flats with children while other people sit on three-bedroom houses," he said. |
| Solihull Council had offered Mrs Bottrill another property to live in about six miles away and she was considering whether to move there at the time of her death. | Solihull Council had offered Mrs Bottrill another property to live in about six miles away and she was considering whether to move there at the time of her death. |
| A council spokesman said there was "never a requirement for Ms Bottrill to move". | |
| Houses were not imposed on people, rather householders selected from a list of available properties and made bids on their choices and in Ms Bottrill's case she had been successful with two properties, they said. | |
| A spokeswoman for the Department for Work and Pensions said: "This is a tragic case. Our sympathies are with her family. | A spokeswoman for the Department for Work and Pensions said: "This is a tragic case. Our sympathies are with her family. |
| "There are often complex reasons as to why people may commit suicide and we would not comment further." | "There are often complex reasons as to why people may commit suicide and we would not comment further." |
| Samaritans told BBC News "although a catalyst may appear to be obvious, suicide is seldom the result of a single factor or event and is likely to have several interrelated causes". | Samaritans told BBC News "although a catalyst may appear to be obvious, suicide is seldom the result of a single factor or event and is likely to have several interrelated causes". |