Taxing Times for Families

Up to a million families each stand to lose an average of £511 a year under tax and benefit changes, according to research.

Anti-poverty campaigners dubbed the start of the financial year Bad Friday, warning cuts totalling more than £2bn were taking effect over the Easter weekend.

Shadow chancellor Ed Balls said the impact calculated by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS (SES: E1:I49.SI - news) ) was proof of a "tax credits bombshell" with up to a million households losing eligibility entirely. Mr Balls said the IFS figures revealed a "bombshell".

More than 850,000 families stood to lose their child tax credit - worth around £545 per year - from the start of the financial year.

Child Poverty Action Group chief executive Alison Garnham said: "Some of the poorest working families will lose thousands of pounds from their annual income, leaving them in a desperate struggle to pay for basics like groceries, clothes and household bills."

This sounds slightly out of step with the Coalition's "we aim to be the most family-friendly nation on Earth" objective - which you can read on page 41 in the Conservative's 2010 manifesto here:

Make Britain the Most Family-Friendly Country in Europe

http://media.conservatives.s3.amazonaws.com/manifesto/cpmanifesto2010_lowres.pdf

The key phrases are here:

"We will make Britain the most family-friendly country in Europe.

We will support families in the tax and benefits system, extend flexible working and improve parental leave.

We will help parents cope with the commercialisation of childhood and give families more control over their lives.

We will support and improve Sure Start, and introduce a new universal health visiting service.

We will give targeted help to disadvantaged and dysfunctional families".

While the Conservative's intentions are good, the reality is that the brakes are applied too fiercely on benefits, when a family member is lucky enough to secure a job. There will be a shortfall in the first 3 to 6 months where the adjusted economy takes effect.

I encountered one young woman, a single parent, at a village hall who had a monthly shortfall of £400. It is hard for me to believe that this woman's circumstances are that unique and aren't frequently repeated almost everywhere in Britain.

The economy of single people is critical, to put it mildly.

The Tories have previously, never given much thought to single parent families and single people's only acknowledgement that they are up against it is the single person's Council Tax discount.

Now they are even failing to give even their much preferred one man, one woman nuclear family a helping hand in these most difficult times.