Tackle child poverty – give everyone fair start
Your first person Column by Rory Palmer and article on child poverty (both January 25) made stark and sad reading.
It cannot be right, in 2013, that over a third of the city's children are growing up in poverty.
At the same time, from April, millionaires will get a tax break putting more than £100,000 in their pockets. I think this is obscene – some would say criminal.
It will only get worse as the Government's cuts and freezing of child and family benefits kicks in.
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Our children are paying a terrible price in the name of "austerity", largely because of the greed of the bankers and financiers which caused the world economic meltdown of 2008.
At that time the Labour Government had to pay tens of billions of pounds to bail out the banks.
Had they not done this, all of our savings would have gone down the tubes and the whole economy would have collapsed.
So we have a deficit which has to be dealt with. Nobody doubts this.
If we are "all in it together", as Mr Cameron tells us, we must work together, share the burden and protect the most vulnerable in our community.
Our pensioners, people on low incomes and especially our children should not be bearing a disproportionate burden.
In his article, Mr Palmer, as deputy mayor, rightly focuses on the City which is his responsibility.
But the problem of rapidly increasing child poverty is a national one.
I live and work in Thurmaston which adjoins the city. Some of our children are suffering, too, although, understandably, many good parents are too proud to admit how bad the situation is.
They face both rising prices and cuts. Some of them are paying £20 a week to bus their children to school and have a school dinner.
Other parents of very young children want to go back to work but just cannot afford the nursery fees.
I'm lucky enough to have a decent job but, as a single parent, £200 a week nursery fees takes a big chunk out of my wages.
Of course, as the deputy mayor points out, child poverty is not just a problem of here and now – it has terrible long-term consequences.
In later life these children will be more likely to suffer ruinous health problems.
A poorly-nourished child cannot flourish at school and this will diminish employment prospects.
What sort of society do we want? One in which fat cats get fatter or one in which everyone has a fair start and good prospects?
I think the latter and we must end the cruelty of child poverty now.
Kate Knaggs, Thurmaston parish councillor.
4 Comments
by agewait
Friday, February 01 2013, 1:29PM
“I am sick and tired of comments from the disengaged on the plight of the trapped. They simply appear to be regurgitating the propaganda fed to them from a bunch of multi-millionaire I am outraged by the callous indifference of the softminded. Fuelled by the scapegoating tactics of the disengaged, and morally bankrupt shower that occupy number Ten currently.
As millions face a brutal combination of rising prices, stagnant wages and the erosion of social security, some of the UK's individuals are evading taxes to the tune of £5.2 billion a year – the equivalent of an extra £200 per year to every household in the UK.
Today is the deadline for millions of people to return their Self Assessment tax returns to HMRC. Most people, whether low earners with income just above the tax threshold or high earners paying the highest tax rate, take pride in playing fair with the rest of society – they will stay up late declaring every penny earned and refrain from playing fast and loose with the tax rules. But some people don't play by the rules. They try to get out of paying their fair dues to society and shirk their responsibility. And they leave the rest of us to pick up the tab. This isn't just wrong in principle, it's deeply damaging. Poverty is on the march in Britain and every pound dodged could be used to meet this challenge.
Oxfam is calling for fair play in taxation in order to help millions escape poverty for good. Some people aren't paying their fair share Tax evasion by individuals At a time when the poorest are being pushed deeper into poverty, some individuals aren't paying their fair share. One tactic to illegally evade UK taxes is to move money offshore without disclosing this information to HMRC. Oxfam has estimated that UK residents could hold as much as £355 billion in financial assets offshore, of which an estimated £298 billion are undeclared to HMRC4.
Considering an average annual return on investment of 6.2%5, and applying a Capital Gains Tax rate of 28%6, this would yield £5.2 billion in unpaid tax.”
by 4_Stroke
Wednesday, January 30 2013, 9:23PM
“The responsibility to tackle child poverty rests first and foremost with the parents not with the state. If you cannot afford children then do not have them. Benefits are a safety net and a last resort, not a lifestyle choice.”
by kateknaggs
Wednesday, January 30 2013, 8:02PM
“"As a single, working mother I am trying very hard to sustain a work life balance. I state in my letter that I am lucky enough to have decent job. I fund my child's day-care nursery costs in full. These are almost £200 per week which is the going rate. I don't really understand the connections made with my income and my awareness or understanding of the position of some of our children in this country. It is a well known fact that a large percentage of Leicester & Leicestershire children are living in poverty. Whatever we earn we should all be aware of this terrible situation"...”
by spalding1944
Wednesday, January 30 2013, 4:56PM
“Did I miss read or was it an error, £200 a WEEK for nursery care. You must have a really well paid job to afford that plus other living expences ans so child poverty hardly effect you”