Cameron hints at child benefit taper
James Forsyth 10:59am
David Cameron’s comments to The House magazine on child benefit are causing quite a stir this morning. The Telegraph splashes on the PM’s line that ‘Some people say that’s the
unfairness of it, that you lose the child benefit if you have a higher rate taxpayer in the family,’ he said. ‘Two people below the level keep the benefit. So, there’s a
threshold, a cliff-edge issue.’ ‘We always said we would look at the way it’s implemented and that remains the case, but I don’t want to impinge on the Chancellor’s
Budget.’
I suspect that what Cameron means by this is that they are looking at a taper. When one Tory MP raised concerns about the policy with Cameron soon after it was announced, Cameron assured the MP that the policy would be implemented in such a way that families wouldn’t lose the whole benefit if one parent moved just into the higher rate tax band.
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Nickle
January 13th, 2012 11:51am Report this commentWhat its really saying is this.
Look you earn a lot of money. We're going to take 50% of it. However, if you want any services for that money, bugger off you not the sort of person who should get anything back.
ie. All the costs, none of the services.
Eventually people will get the message.
If you work hard and do well, the UK doesn't like you. The UK government won't say thank you for the tax. The UK government will attack you because you have worked hard.
In other words, you are better off outside the UK. Mind you if you leave, you're going to be called scum for walking.
Neil
January 13th, 2012 12:06pm Report this commentWhat is the point of setting up an Office for Tax Simplification if you are going to complicate the system further?
This was never going to work because it introduced an alien concept in our tax system: treating the family as a single fiscal unit. In every other aspect of our lives the tax system recognises us as individuals only. I am personally in favour of treating married couples as one fiscal unit, but you can't mix systems.
If the government are going to introduce some kind of honesty form for mothers to declare their spouse's income it won't work. What if the spouse simply refuses to provide the data?
Percy
January 13th, 2012 12:20pm Report this commentWhat a surprise that it's all a bit of a muddle. Still Dave's off to Saudi, do you think they'll show him that place where they beheaded that 'witch' the other day.
Publius
January 13th, 2012 12:32pm Report this commentJust scrap Child Benefit.
strapworld
January 13th, 2012 1:07pm Report this commentWell this, almost another Cameron promise, has been kicked firmly in to touch by Chancellor georgie.
What a government. The Prime Minister is controlled by his deputy and georgie. Give me Maggie any day she was definately in charge!
I think this exercise tells us that we can ignore everything Cameron says, unless cleggy or/and georgie are nodding their heads.
Dimoto
January 13th, 2012 1:21pm Report this commentStrapworld - and thank God for that !
Cameron's "sweet reasonableness" (a billion here a billion there), would destroy any chance of bringing the deficit down, if left unchallenged.
Richboy syndrome - far too keen to be liked.
Barry Bilge
January 13th, 2012 1:37pm Report this commentIt would be better to remove the distortion by ending child benefits for all. Keep paying parents already in receipt of them but have no more children qualifying for it.(or if the spend-taxpayers-money hand wringers must have some crumb, limit it to one child.)
Cynic
January 13th, 2012 2:51pm Report this commentWhen I was born you got no child benefit at all. Later it was only for the second child and it was a tax allowance. Stop paying people to reproduce. If you can't afford it, don't conceive it.
Robert Christopher
January 13th, 2012 3:24pm Report this commentWhy not give it to everyone entitled to it, but tax it, with a choice of which parent receives it.
That would ensure near 'perfect tapering'.
If both parents were close to the upper limit, there may be a slight difficulty, but then, they would be earning near the maximum combined limit anyway.
The tax office could be updated if any changes in circumstances occur; not a difficult problem.
Mike
January 13th, 2012 8:46pm Report this commentThe measure to remove it from high rate taxpayers is anti-family, anti-marriage, unfair and if it is not overturned it will cause the Conservatives to lose another election.
Remind me, how many Poles living in Poland are receiving child benefit from the UK?
It doesn't pay in this country to be married, honest, hard working or English. Cameron is an utter buffoon.
R2-D2
January 13th, 2012 11:54pm Report this commentThe government still has a chance to drop this idiotic policy. The child benefit cut is unfair and a massive vote-loser, but above all it is just stupid. Creating a deep income trap at £43000 will damage the economy by much more than the £1bn that they expect to save by doing this. The only people benefiting will be those hired to administer this complex and intrusive system.
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