Right you lot we need to get our act together

[OhYouBadBadKitten]

So many threads about Child Benefits, but we need to get our act together and speak as a cohesive voice.

Lottiegal has started n FB page: MAKE CHILD BENEFIT FAIR FOR ALL.
Has anyone else started one too?

A FB is a small start, so is writing to your MP. But they are just small actions that need to grow. We need to get our act together on this.

you are welcome :)

link to the FB page

It would be great to see MN really making something of this, rather than having dozens of threads of rants.

I am not affected as I live abroad, but I think that it is simply a bad law.

Nothing against those earning £90k no longer receiving CB, but the way they are going about this is unjust.

I'm definitely up for a protest march but I don't do FB.

What about a no.10 petition like the one (I think Rivens?) about availability of nappies for SN people.

In general I don't have a problem with CB being scrapped for higher earners (although I do see the argument about it being paid to the mother, and might be her only source of income) but this unfairly penalises single parents and families where one parent SAH.

Emailed MP. Where is Ed Miliband?! Yvette Cooper is fab, but He should make an appearance, too.

Emailed our new Conservative MP just waiting to see if I get a reply now.

Will definately be up for more action and a march. Have emailed my MP but will also be going to his surgery I am so angered by this. Have also joined a few FB groups and signed 2 petitions.

Riven, what did your MP say and what party does he/she belong to?

Flightt, they are stopping it in THREE years time for all highter rate tax payers. i.e people earning above £45,000 and people on this thread want to march about it.

I couldn't give a hoot whether or not CB is "fair" and I absolutely do not agree that "changes are needed".

CB should remain universal. I think the fairness aspect is missing the point and playing into their hands.

I'm annoyed by the lack of response from Ed Milliband too. Only the other day he said that he wanted to stand up for the "squeezed middle" but he isn't doing a very good job of it.

I have said on countless other threads that this cut doesn't just discriminate against SAHMs it discriminates against all women, SAHMs, working mums and single mums and more importantly children.

On the ITN news yesterday they said that a poll showed that 85% of people support the cuts. People are too short sighted to realise that this is just the tip of the iceberg. Can't people see that we must not allow the Tories to introduce a policy that is so blatantly unfair? If they will do it with child benefit, what next? I dread to think of the mess they will make with education and the health service.

Wot gets me is that my husbands' taxes will go to support children in families who are better off than us while our children get nothing-this is discrimination!!!!!!

Oh didn't spot that someone has already explained it and elaborated.

abouteve
Why the ? Surely the time to protest is now, when the public opinion is so against this, not in three years.

Or do you think that £45k is a high wage, and CB should not be paid to anyone earning that much?

Just seen a FB page called 'UK Child Benefit Protest'

abouteve. Correct me if I am wrong, I may be thinking of someone else, but didn't you say that you are a working single mum? If so I'm surprised that you are taking this on the chin.

Yes I do think that £45,000 is a high wage.

85% of people support it, the ones who aren't affected by it, might be shortsighted but so was voting the tories which I didn't.

If they had cut other benefits for less well off then no-one on here would give a damn. Suddenly single parents are the concern of the wealthy couples all of a sudden.

Good luck the your protests.

Sorry about the overuse of suddenly. Yes I am doll but this doesn't affect me and wouldn't even if I was extremely well paid as I won't be in receipt of child benefit in 2013.

I just cannot sit back whilst 15% of the highest paid people are so concerned about losing a small amount of money to help the economy and are harping on about being concerned for single parents.

Anyway I'm going now before I fall out with what is appears to be a vast majority of high rate taxpayers on mumsnet.

Anyhoo...

Here is my response from my MP:

"Thank you for contacting me about the change to child benefit. I do appreciate feedback from constituents.

I recognise that the decision to withdraw child benefit from households with a higher rate taxpayer will not be popular. It is important, however, to put this in context: 85 per cent of households will be unaffected.

The Labour Government left us in a position where we were spending £700 billion but only raising £540 billion in taxes. We have to close that deficit, and that means some very tough decisions on both tax and spending. We have already announced cuts in benefits totalling £12 billion, and there will be further cuts to be announced in the Spending Review on 20th October. These benefit changes affect some of the poorest people in society; it would not be right, therefore, to exempt the top 15 per cent of households from contributing to the deficit reduction (the child benefit change will save just over £1 billion). It is also hard to justify taxing people on very low incomes to give child benefit to households with much higher incomes.

The child benefit change does not come into effect until 2013 and the government is also reviewing the taxation of couples, including the married couples allowance, in order to examine the overall effect on families. I will of course pass on your views to Treasury Ministers as part of this process."

I have, of course, replied.

Has anyone else received a response? Are we all being told the same thing by any chance?

Wot a cop out, bet they didn't even answer your question properly

Thanks AboutEve.

I wasn't sure how that worked either - obviously the way it's being worked so that it isn't about household income is rather unfair.

but I do think 45 grand is pretty high in terms of income - I thought I was doing OK on the benefits I get, but if 45000 is considered a small amount to live on I'm practically destitute.

There must be two sides to this...I'm rubbish on economics and politics.

happy to join in any marches or protests

one good thing however is at leaast the torries will never get in power again, well not for many many years.