Child Benefit Cuts

Originally Posted by Ed

I think that there should be compulsory but temporary sterilisation for everyone, reversed only when you can prove that (a) you have the emotional maturity to have and to raise kids and (b) the economic means to support them.

Would get my vote.

[Littlepeahead]

They have already backtracked a little today to say that as this doesn't come in for a few years there is still plenty of time to work out the finer details and thresholds on income. I bet there ends up being a combined household income by the time it all starts.

And there should be a special tax break for Aunties. Costs me a fortune every time I take my nephews out. Legoland, London Eye, Chelsea matches, Junior Membership at Essex CCC, the Zoo, gallons of ice cream. I even got roped into buying the school uniforms this year as I took them shopping to give their mum a break.

But the one tax that really really gets to me - the way I get taxed on my private medical insurance. It's classed as a perk. When I had my elbow surgey I used my Bupa even though the NHS would have done it the same week. I paid £200 Bupa excess plus anasthetic fees at another £200, and saved the NHS the £8,000 my op and hospital stay cost. In return I get taxed at something like 22% of the £700 value of my Bupa. What's more - if I pay for Mr LPH to have spouse cover I have to pay for that with money I have already paid income tax on. So I save the government NHS costs but pay for the privilige.

[embee]

Originally Posted by specialone

Right, firstly I'm not a parent but am a Tory .

...stuff...

Sometimes I get a bit annoyed because it seems like parents get all the perks and non parents are paying towards it. Why ?

Same here. Don't get me wrong, some degree of benefit system is admirable, but it does whizz me off when those receiving loads of dosh start whingeing when faced with a bit of reality. Being self-employed. single, no kids, I am entitled to diddly squat but have to pay all my taxes. Fine, render unto Caesar and all that.

But put it this way, imagine you're single, no kids, earning 20k, and HMRC+2 neighbours who each earn 40k with 2 kids each come knocking at your door and HMRC says "Give me £50 now", and promptly hands it to the neighbours and says "Thanks, see you next week", I don't think many folk would be over the moon. Get my drift?

If you've got 50k income and can't afford to raise a kid or 2, you're seriously doing something wrong. Try giving up a few fags, bottles of Chardonnay, put off buying the 50" plasma or the odd holiday in Florida first. Sorry, I can't help any more, you've had my donation.

[Bibio]

why cant they just get all the different benefit offices and combine them into one.

for instance my household.

after claiming income support i then i have to apply to:

IR&C for a top up (child tax credits) as above does not pay enough then i have to apply to:

disability as my wife is disabled then i have to apply to:

child benefits agency as i have children.

now my family and i cant be the only household in the uk that has 2 children 2 adults one of which is disabled and the other has to care 24/7. they know exactly how much i should be getting and what benifits i'm intitled to but prefer to keep quiet as to what i'm actually intitled to, so i have to make an appointment to see the rights office and get help which can take up to 3 months to get an appointment.

without the child benefit i would be royally up shiz creek.

the whole idea of child benefit was based around making sure that mothers would not have to rely on the fathers to feed their children which by today's standards comes no where close to reality. i get £133.77 (33.70 CB and 100.07 CTC) combined a week yes thats £9.55 per child per day to cloth and feed my two teenage boys i also get a further £100 per year for school clothing.

yes i supose i could let the state look after my wife and go out to work but i would be worse off, i sat and worked it roughly out and for my family to have a semi decent life style i would have to be earning in the region of £45,000 a year which would not take into account a mortgage.

Looks to me like another short sighted **** up of a policy to make a saving that will be eroded by a) giving married couples tax breaks and b)the costs in implementing a further complicated tax system Read here


PS for the record, i don't necessarily believe that there should be universal child benefit

[dizzyblonde]

TBH I can't see how a family with an income of over 44k is going to notice £80 a month disappearing if they only have one child. Your second child gives you another 50 odd a month, so perhaps more noticeable, and again with a third child. If you can't manage on that income, you need to look at how you manage yer money.

For a couple that earns well below that as a joint income, I would certainly notice if both my kids benefits were withdrawn. Times are slightly hard, ask me a few months ago, and I'd have said I wouldn't get my knickers in a twist over it. I've been entitled to 10 or so quid a week in Child Tax credits since Peg moved here, but haven't bothered to claim, but now with two children its needed.

Now to be really effective, I'd like see chavvy layabouts* lose their child benefit, make em get off their ass and go to work for it like anyone else....but then that sounds really horrid, why should people that work get nothing, but people that don't get everything?

*In this I mean those who purposely prefer to sit about doing sweet FA, as opposed to those who have no choice due to illness or other, and those who really would rather work, but have no luck.

[yorkie_chris]

Originally Posted by Messie

I see one little anomaly, though I don't expect it will affect many. What is neither parent pays tax? I don't mean on benefits, I mean because they have money just sitting there. Seems to me they will still get child benefit!

They already paid tax when they earned that money, and they pay tax again on any interest that money makes or any dividends from shares...
Seems fair.

Originally Posted by Messie

NO-ONE is given a house by the Government for goodness sake! Some people get housing benefit to help pay for their housing.

Tell that to half of the layabouts around here who have a lifestyle paid for in full by £5.50 a b*stard gallon and not at all by their own labours.

[yorkie_chris]

Originally Posted by dizzyblonde

Now to be really effective, I'd like see chavvy layabouts lose their child benefit, make em get off their ass and go to work for it like anyone else....but then that sounds really horrid, why should people that work get nothing, but people that don't get everything?

+1
Not that you'd need any benefit if you didn't get taxed to death on what you actually earn.

[punyXpress]

[QUOTE=Bibio;2385300]why cant they just get all the different benefit offices and combine them into one.

That's just about what the new Gov't is proposing.
. . . and on the radio today, it was hinted that salary could be ' notionally ' transferred to a non-working partner which would go some way to sorting that unfairness.
Agree with you regarding all the hoops people have to go through to claim benefits, but the above SHOULD solve some of that and would ' free ' a lot of the beaurocracy involved in it - by that I mean " crats "

[dizzyblonde]

Originally Posted by yorkie_chris

Tell that to half of the layabouts around here who have a lifestyle paid for in full by £5.50 a b*stard gallon and not at all by their own labours.

+1 on what your getting at, -1 for your colourful description!

Halifax is over run with lazy layabout scroungers. Its like its inbred into them