It is devastating to be without the essentials of life such as food and housing. Unfortunately, because of irresponsible government spending, many will become homeless. Some abuse the housing benefits system and live better than hard working self sufficient individuals, and some truly need temporary help to get back on their feet. Regardless, the housing benefit cap is necessary.
The cuts are vital. Now, just like everyone else, the government has to cut back because of the basic household money management problem of having spent too much and saved too little relative to income. This program needs to be capped because it is economically unstable and the alternatives are better. The market helps through adaptations to different demand. For example, dividing large flats into many smaller ones. Charities work to resolve the issue too. Welfare is unstable also because of the perverse incentives and absurd amount of money used. A major flaw in all welfare policies is that there is no way of being efficient. The beauty of non-profits and a free market is getting a deal for being benevolent. There is essentially no charity rating service for government handouts; taxpayers do not choose who deserves the help, for how long, and where.
Historically the standard of living of the poorest has risen substantially over the past fifty years. This is not because of the welfare state. This is because of private growth that inevitably brings all classes to a higher utility. Some may argue people are heartless and cruel just like the markets, which is why we need the government to care for the helpless. This cynical view combined with economic fallacies creates the situation we face today.