Government Announces Big Change To Benefits System

Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne has outlined a number of changes to the benefits system to tackle the growing UK public borrowing deficit. The measures that are likely to grab the headlines are that child benefit is to be scrapped for families where at least one parent pays the higher rate of tax and families on benefits will not be allowed to claim more than the average working family earns.

Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne has outlined a number of changes to the benefits system to tackle the growing UK public borrowing deficit. The measures that are likely to grab the headlines are that child benefit is to be scrapped for families where at least one parent pays the higher rate of tax and families on benefits will not be allowed to claim more than the average working family earns. It is estimated some 50,000 families will be £93 a week worse off under the new average earnings rule whilst a further 1.2m families will be effected by the child benefit reform.

Defending the changes, which will save the Treasury £1bn a year, Mr Osborne said “We face a very, very serious economic situation. This country has some of the biggest debts in the world and we’ve got to pay those debts off”. Mr Osborne said that he wanted to make sure that work pays.

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