Reduction in child trust funds and child tax credits

[haoshiji]

At-a-glance: Cameron coalition's policy plans

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/election_2010/8677088.stm

Reduction in child trust funds and child tax credits

Bah!

MrsKitty, what do you mean different rules?

poorbuthappy - My understanding is that in England and certain areas of Wales you can use your 15 'free' hours towards any nursery-care provider (i.e. a school nursery / playgroup or a private day care nursery) and that the free hours are deducted from your nursery fees during term times. Where I am you are only allowed to use your free hours at a school nursery or at one of very few listed playgroups or similar.

The issue I have with this, and the reason it makes me so cross, is that I thought the free nursery places scheme was supposed to help mothers get back to work -well, show me a job that'll let me start after 9am and then get back to collect DS at 1145 and I'll have it! There is absolutely no wrap-around care available in my area - no CMs with any spaces that collect from my local school nursery and no nurseries that collect from my local school. And TBH, even if there were any CM spaces, why should I have to move him from a nursery setting that he's very happy in to a set up involving 2 care providers?

Sorry - thread hijack - I get a bit wound up about this!

Should make it clear - I don't expect more free hours - I think the free provision is great - I just wish I could have the benefit of it!

MadameCastafiore - no tax under 10K applies to everybody. It's just a raising of the tax threshold. It's only taking place gradually, though (the Tories insisted on spreading it).

My thoughts on CTF....

Had DD1 3 months ago and received the £250 plus set up £25/month to add to it. Already worried that at 18, a very impressionable age, she might be a bit wayward (I was at 18)and piss the money up the wall. My mum says "it's simple, just don't tell her...yours matured at 18 but we didn't let you have it until you were 21 and we made sure you bought a car with it"
Not as easy as that, she's fully entitled to withdraw the lot at 18 and do what the hell she likes with it. And if we don't tell her, every other 18 year old around her will.

Silly idea in the first place if you ask me.

Imarriedafrog - only have one child.

When we did apply for it we did need it as I was in f/t education so it was good then. When I got a job I told them about my change in income level and it went down. I suppose it never really crossed my mind that I could just say that I don't want it, but like I said earlier I think only such a small proportion of people would do this/do do this to not make a difference to the country's economy as a whole. They do need a better way of working it out. In the mean time I think I may divert it into DD's bank account.

The threshold of 10k will NOT apply to everyone - anyone earning over 40k won't get it.

It's only a reduction in CTF and TC to higher earners, isn't it? Low income families will still get it.

I have just been onto entitledto...just how accurate is it-have you always found it to be true? just wondered.

Disclaimer - I haven't read the whole thread - BUT I always assumed CTFs were introduced to ease the way towards paying for tertiary education, so that over time universities and further education colleges would be able to charge more realistic fees and the government's subsidy in this area would be reduced. Seemed sensible to me.

thereistheball - That was my understanding as well, but I disagree that it's sensible. THe idea is great but it only works if parents are willing and able to keep topping it up. Given that this is a very real possibility, I foresee university education becoming very much an opportunity restricted to the well off in the future.

I am saving every penny I can for my children, but there's no way it's going to cover even half their tuition fees by the time they're 18, let alone any living expenses (although I would expect them to get a part-time job to help support themselves, as I did). Some parents won't be able to afford to save anything, no matter how much they'd like to, and some parents just won't save anything full stop.

Personally I would like to see a situation where we cutt the number of university places available but fund the remaining ones fully (tuition fees, course material costs and a significant contribution towards living expenses), regardless of background. IMO this would do far more to get kids from poorer backgrounds into university. I would also like to see far more importance attached to vocational qualifications, which, for the majority of people, are far more 'employable' than a non-career-specific degree.

LilyBolero - the increase in the personal allowance next April (of about 1K) is expected to apply to basic rate taxpayers only, that's true.

Didn't the lib dems say prior to the election that the 10k threshold increase would apply to anyone earning up to 112,000?

I was happy to give up tax credits on the basis the 10k threshold would more than make up for it.

Now it appears tax credits have been given up and anyone earning higher rate tax won't benefit from the 10k tax threshold.
Yet the mansion tax targeted at higher earners has been scrapped.

Not saying I was in favour of the mansion tax but it would appear the middle earners are being taxed more than the tory/lib dem manifestos said they would and the very rich are getting off scot free as usual. I am sure the rich will find a way of avoiding any higher CGT.

Why didn't all three main parties say at the election..if you earn 35k to 60k we will take more tax from you to give to the lowest paid but we won't take any more from the very rich...would have been a bit more honest!

Didn't the lib dems say prior to the election that the 10k threshold increase would apply to anyone earning up to 112,000?

I was happy to give up tax credits on the basis the 10k threshold would more than make up for it.

Now it appears tax credits have been given up and anyone earning higher rate tax won't benefit from the 10k tax threshold.
Yet the mansion tax targeted at higher earners has been scrapped.

Not saying I was in favour of the mansion tax but it would appear the middle earners are being taxed more than the tory/lib dem manifestos said they would and the very rich are getting off scot free as usual. I am sure the rich will find a way of avoiding any higher CGT.

Why didn't all three main parties say at the election..if you earn 35k to 60k we will take more tax from you to give to the lowest paid but we won't take any more from the very rich...would have been a bit more honest!

whoops accidental double post - sorry!

Ds2 has £500 in his CTF, well last time it was £474, so less than put in. If they scrap them will we be able to cash them in and take a holiday then

snowlady, the coalition agreement says:

We agree to announce in the first Budget a substantial increase in the personal allowance from April 2011, with the benefits focused on those with lower and middle incomes... We also agree to a longer term policy objective of further increasing the personal allowance to £10,000, making further real terms steps each year towards this objective.

• how I've seen that written up in the papers is: increase to 10K over the course of parliament, to apply to everyone, but increase next April (first step) to apply only to basic rate taxpayers.

I came into some money when I was 18 (about £6000) and I couldn't tell you where it all went. I got my hair done a lot, drank a lot and I had a lot of clothes, but not one useful thing, and nothing specific enough I can even put my finger on.

I haven't opened the CTF for my DD, I'll save for her to go to university or whatever at 18 and pay for it then. If she is responsible and careful (utterly unlike me in other words) then I can give her it at that point, or I can wait until she needs it (house deposit etc). But I think that the idea that your average 18 year old will spend the money responsibly when they don't have to is daft.

vesela - thanks for clarifying the situation with the 10k tax threshold.

I can see it has to be targeted at lowest salaries first.

It's rubbish to say that low income families will be better off with the £10k threashold.

My WTC is directly affected by how much I earn, if I get a pay rise my WTC goes down. So if I have more take home pay I fully expect to see my WTC going down and the reason for it being given that I have more take home to compensate...

Given that I pay £36.40 a month tax yet get more than ten times that in WTC they have plenty of scope for adjusting things to leave me worse off than I am now.

Also if you get housing benefit and council tax benefit these are reduced if your income goes up. So those of us on low incomes are highly unlikely to be any better off. Give with one hand take with the other. How much they take is still to be seen, but I fully expect it to be more than they give.