However, SNP councillor Tom McEwan has asked the council’s housing and communities committee convener Bob Brawn how fair the rise was on those who had lost their jobs in the coronavirus pandemic.

Councillor Brawn agreed to Councillor McEwan’s request to write to the UK Chancellor to maintain the current top-up of Universal Credit so the council does not get hit with demands.

Councillors approved the rent increase at a meeting of council’s housing and communities committee on February 3, The Perth Advertiser reports.

Directing his comment and question at fellow Blairgowrie and Glens councillor Brawn, Councillor McEwan said: “Universal credit was designed as a punitive benefit encouraging people to go and seek work.

“But obviously because of COVID people are losing their jobs and there are no jobs to replace them. Is it fair on our tenants that they don’t have enough income because of Universal Credit to pay their rent and feed their families?”

Councillor Brawn replied: “The priority is the welfare of tenants - and that includes the financial welfare. And I appreciate that many - or the majority - are having financial issues of one sort or another.”

He said the council had expenditures and it was a “fine balance.”

Councillor Brawn said: “We have to balance the rent between what the outgoings are. And some of those outgoings do provide a service we have been talking about - welfare for tenants. The one per cent rise was the minimum I think that was needed to cover those costs.”

He referred to statistics from a council officer provided earlier in the meeting which said 86 per cent of tenants could afford this rise without referring back to benefit that is based on income.

He said the tenants who participated in the tenant engagement process supported the one per cent rise.

Councillor McEwan asked Councillor Brawn to write to Chancellor Rishi Sunak to maintain the current top-up of Universal Credit so - as a council - PKC did not get hit with these demands.

Councillor Brawn said he was “definitely” happy to take that on board, noting: “We must maintain to help our tenants the best we can and I agree I will take that on board definitely.”

Depute director (communities) Clare Mailer said the 1% rent increase from April 5, 2021 was “in line with the views of tenants” and would ensure PKC’s rent levels “remain affordable and compare favourably to the overall rent levels nationally”.

Councillors were told the council’s rent levels were the lowest in Tayside and one of the lowest in Scotland.