Michael Meacher MP

The ending of universal child benefit is a major political error which will come to haunt the Tories.   It crosses several red lines.   There are the Tory ones that it will discourage marriage and hit single parents.   There are the Labour ones that universality was always designed to produce social cohesion, and its breach will not only undermine national solidarity (already fraying badly), but a service limited to the poor will end up a poor service and one that is steadily whittled away later by means-testing and future cuts.   There are the technical objections that it introduces perverse incentives which penalises households with at least one higher rate taxpayer earning over £43,875 while allowing a couple who both earn £40,000 to continue to draw child benefit without loss.   And all of this to save £1bn a year, just 0.65% of the deficit! (more…)