For a Chancellor who prefaced his Autumn Statement with a declaration that he was “on the side of these who want to work hard and get on”, George Osborne has made some rather inconsistent announcements yesterday.
Consider, for example, his decision to uprate tax credits at below-inflation levels for the next three years. Both working couples and lone parents look set to lose over £23 of their working tax credit (WTC) in 2013-14 as a result of this move. Not so bad, one might think, but remember that this comes on top of a prior freeze in value of other key elements of WTC which will remain in place, and which will shave an additional £60 off a working family’s entitlement next year.
The changes being made to the personal tax allowance will do little to offset this shortfall. Extending the threshold potentially leaves basic rate taxpayers £47 better off in 2013-14. But for low-income working families, much of this gain evaporates as other forms of support are tapered away in response to their higher post-tax income. While those further up the income scale will keep the full £47, a working family eligible for both housing and council tax benefit will gain only 13p a week extra as a result of extended allowances.
Osborne is fond of the notion that there is a group of hard working “strivers” out there who throw “those with their blinds down” into sharp relief. In truth, the vast majority of those who rely on benefits and tax credits for part of their income have worked, are in work, or will be back in work very shortly in the future.
And with estimates suggesting that around 60 per cent of welfare cuts made in this parliament will hit the working poor, the Chancellor must do much more to show he understands the problems that those on low incomes face. Rather than glib words, Osborne needs to start providing real, rather than merely rhetorical, support for hard-pressed working families and individuals.
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