To ask about child tax credit cuts.

[yellowbird11]

Is it inevitable and if so will it affect everyone? what a massive worry to all of you who are going to be affected.My DD works 16 hours a week and has 1 child. She'd love to do more hours as her child is at school but isn't able to. Can anyone give me any idea how much she'll lose, and when? I'm so worried for her because I know without these tax credits they'll be barely able to eat and keep warm. How can these Tory bs sleep at night?

Pyjama - I thought most lone parentson low incomes got most of their childcare costs paid through tax credits, unless this has changed recently?

Pyjama, this isn't a 'young baby' but a school aged child.

pyramara - of course people realise this - just because people aren't single parents doesn't mean they dont need childcare! Most, like me, have paid it for working 35 hours plus a week

It will affect us too and I think we are those it should affect.
We earn less than 20k but with low outgoings presently use ours to pay the very low school fees we have.
We lose tc but with lower income will have more fees paid by gov so thankfully evens itself out.
I'm so sorry for all those who will struggle.

Exactly, so the more hours you work the more it costs the taxpayer. People don't seem able to grasp that.

Dark unless you are a Tory MP I'm not referring to you. What makes you think I was?

Manor - many lone parents don't expect to end up on benefits when they enter into parenthood. Shit happens, partners die and break ups happen . That's just life, things which happen which are out of our control.

I voted conservative and I am in favour of cuts to tax credits.

Yes dreaming. but if you're a single parent you'll likely need to claim childcare costs as only one income thus costing the taxpayer more.

...and while we're on the subject, nothing is paid for by the government, it is paid for by other members of the public.

Would you walk up and down your street, knocking on doors and asking them to give you some of their money because otherwise you wouldn't have enough?

Pyjama- Yes it may cost the taxpayer more in the short term to pay for childcare, but in the longer term,I guess they are hoping that if it keeps people working and therefore more likely to get a promotion/ increase their hours then in the longer term they are going to be less reliant on the state. Kids aren't kids for ever and then the benefits stop. And the need for childcare stops a good few years before that !

Cookie - is the "abuse" you mention the actual reason for the cuts? I only ask because I don't recall Gideon and his mates mentioning it, and I can't seem to find any figures.

Manorgreyhound people pay into the system for years before claiming anything and for years once their children have grown up.

People don't always choose their circumstances.

Manor - many lone parents don't expect to end up on benefits when they enter into parenthood. Shit happens, partners die and break ups happen . That's just life, things which happen which are out of our control.

People may suffer hardship due to poor choices they have made, but trying to make that the responsibility of the rest of the nation is just not ok.

There are plenty of life insurance products on the market that would pay out in the event of the death of a spouse, and CI plans that do the same if you have a disabled DC.

People just choose not to prioritise these, and expect the rest of society to pick up the slack.

Surely you need childcare in a 2 parent family if you both work? Pyjama

IIRC, lone parents to under 3s are not expected to work at all.

All 3 year olds are entitled to some free hours, and tax credits or whatever benefit should absolutely be helping those in working and supporting their family.

I do however feel 16 hours (2 days?) for one school aged child takes the piss a bit.

Sorry.

what is it you do Manor?

Manorgreyhound people pay into the system for years before claiming anything and for years once their children have grown up.

Very very few people are net contributors to the system.

People don't always choose their circumstances.

Perhaps not, but by failing to adequately protect themselves against what are reasonably foreseeable outcomes, they do have to shoulder some responsibility.

Baby my point is though, that if all of the single parents went to work full time there would be no savings made. Which is the supposed target of the government.

I would hope that single parents would look to increase their hours as their children grow up to go back to being independent.

It is under 5 Dark they won't try to make you get a job until your kids are at school.

Sonnet. Lots of two parent families like ours pay no childcare. We have 4 kids and have paid virtually nothing in childcare for 16 years. We both work ( 70+ hours between us) but all work is done around each other. DH works days , I do nights. It is the only way we can afford to live, we get no benefits. Lots of families I know work around each other like this. others have parents who help with childcare.

Single parents didn't set up the ridiculous system where working 16 hours is enough because tax credits top you up. Therefore single working parents shouldn't be getting the blame. My DD would love to work full time but her employer is unable to give her any more hours. But even if she did it would still be a struggle because the national minimum wage is set far too low. One income should be enough to survive on but often barely is, who's fault is that? My DD didn't choose this way of life, she was in an abusive marriage and has struggled to get in the position she's in today, a system that she didn't create.

I really hate the comments that always arrive on these threads about people being poor because of poor choices. People really have no clue. Being poor and relying on benefits can and does happen to anyone, not to mention the fact the vast majority of those suffering from cuts to tax credits are already in work and working a lot of hours in low paid jobs.

Sonnet, yes of course they need childcare but my point is with two incomes there is one to foot the childcare bill,, and one to foot the mortgage/bills.

A single parent only has one income, that could potentially be sucked up entirely by childcare leaving nothing. Childcare can be claimed through tax credits. But what's for the best, cost the taxpayer even more or partially care for your own children while working part time and gradually increase hours?

Sorry, these threads just get me so riled.

The situation always seems to be presented as this false dichotomy of either

a) The state gives me money to live on
or
b) My DCs and I suffer extreme hardship

I think the time has come for us to find a way to get more creative about this, which means people taking a lot more personal responsibility for their lives and their circumstances.

Whether that means rethinking plans for DCs, reprioritising their spending or doing whatever it takes, the current reliance on the state is just not sustainable from an economic standpoint, nor desirable from an ideological one.

OP wouldn't your DD want to be self-reliant?