Do you think we should life the two child benefit cap?

[Marshmallow4545]

I believe that the majority of people think that the cap should remain and child poverty should be tackled in different ways.

Personally I would like to see children on FSMs allowed free access to after school extracurricular clubs and activities. I would also provide more poor families with access to food banks and would look to stock these with a range of healthy and nutritious options either through donation or state funding if required. I would also look to recruit volunteers to offer advice on health and diet in these places. I would provide clothing and school uniform banks with high quality, second hand clothing that kids would actually want to wear. I have some branded 'fashionable' stuff my kids have grown out of that's still in great condition that I would happily donate.

All of the above in my view is preferable to lifting the cap and would be more effective in tackling the impact that child poverty has on the child.

So AIBU that the two child cap should remain and we should look at other more direct ways to tackle child poverty?

No it shouldn’t be lifted.

Such a double edged sword… I don’t want children in poverty, it seems that lifting the cap would be the easier way to lift these children out of poverty, I want people to take responsibility for their own children and contraception, I don’t want the welfare bill to increase, I don’t want taxes in the UK to increase for those in work… still unsure

Uc child rate ( which is what is restricted to 2 kids) is £300 a month not £17 a week

Are they hoping to be off UC in the end and earning enough where they don't need to rely on the taxpayer?

Did they not get alimony or whatever in the divorce?

I don’t want children in poverty, in fact I really really do not want children in poverty.

But handing in many cases feckless and irresponsible parents yet more cash to ‘life them from poverty’ is not the answer. In many cases it won’t be spent on the kids, just more junk food, vapes, nails, tattoos and tat from Home Bargains. When they buy food it’s expensive processed packs of meat and sugary cereals.

The obsession is with how other people live. Have you seen the cartoon where a man is sitting with a massive plate of biscuits all to himself and on either side of him are two people. One with two biscuits, one with an empty plate. The man with the big plate says to the one with the empty plate "he's stole your biscuit".

This thread reminds me of this.

Paying tax is not "giving your money away".

I have been in the situation where I was the middle income household who got SFA when people around me were getting, eg, EMA for their children. I then felt that I had to mirror that for mine and it was really difficult.

But, I didn't blame the people who were getting it.

I blamed the Tories and I still do!

Yep, I have children.

But then there's carer's allowance (or carer's element of UC) plus the disabled child element of UC (which is not pennies!).

I work and care for my disabled child. I do receive DLA, but my employer does not give my anything extra for either my caring or an additional element of salary for my disabled child.

What's SFA and EMA?

Who on earth said about controlling! Get a grip. Providing healthy food is hardly controlling, it's actually responsible.

I have real life experience of vouchers. It was tried and failed. I live in Scotland. I have no need to look at America where people live in abject poverty as an example of how things work.

Yeah it’s a really silly cartoon which I imagine was created by a ‘sixth form politician’ using AI.

Can you not see that this is punishing the children, not the parents? How do you feel this will help?

Take it from me, they’ll lift the cap, and I’m 2 years there will have to be more concessions because ‘they’re all still in poverty’

At the end someone somehow needs to feel the pinch, otherwise it won't work and we'll just be continually subsidising bad choices and bad decisions.

They will eventually stop claiming UC when their children are older. Child maintenance payments are disregarded in UC claims. No alimony as you put it is due as both women are working. Oh and BTW one of these feckless MC fathers has been able to reduce his CM by paying more into his private pension.

It’s not punishing anyone. It is refusing to reward them.

Just to be clear. I have two. I wanted five. 😂Seriously. I wanted the whole "Little House on the Prairie" thing. But, I couldn't afford it. However, I will not judge the children of people who did it regardless.

Vouchers absolutely wouldn’t shut up the haters. That’s essentially the American Food Stamps / SNAP model and it gets plenty of hate. Lots of people accuse shopkeepers of accepting higher amounts of stamps in exchange for actually selling them booze or smokes, people accuse stamp receivers of selling them for half their worth in order to get cash for drugs etc. it’s got plenty of issues

I personally don’t deal in sweeping generalisations. I don’t find them helpful and I think it often serves to further the divide in our society. Whilst I agree that not everyone would spend it on their children - I have also seen and lived it (albeit not in the uk) that some people have children that they can afford to and then their circumstances change. The problem is the children are still in poverty. Yes there are irresponsible parents of course but from a moral standpoint I don’t want the children to suffer. Do I think lifting the cap is the answer personally no - but I don’t know what better solution would be.

No I think its works as a form of detterant. CB isn't a lot of money so I doubt it will life many out of poverty. Life is expensive and if you choose to have my than 2 DC you need to consider money!

Your employer sounds more reasonable than my previous one who couldn't get rid of me quick enough once it became apparent my child was disabled and would need more care than previously.

Having an understanding employer when you have a disabled child is priceless.

Child benefit isn’t limited to two children.

CB has never had a 2 child limit. This is about the UC child element which is limited to 2 children.

It doesn't