- 29
- Aug
Gordon Brown’s controversial tax credit scheme is a failure by some standards. It has been defrauded by an estimated £3bn but it has also made overpayments in excess of £6.6bn since it being introduced in 2003, according to the National Audit Office.
Alistair Darling, the chancellor, yesterday said that “it is unacceptable to have these high levels of error.”
Sir Menzies Campbell said the party believes in “fairer, greener, not higher taxes.” The party estimates that a single-earner household with an income of less than £46,000 will be better off under the proposals but dual-income families will suffer if they surpass an income of £68,000.
Edward Leigh, Tory chairman of the Commons public accounts committee. He said: “The reputation of HM Revenue and Customs for competence looks increasingly threadbare.”
“There are no winners here. To the taxpayer it means a torrent of wasted money. To vulnerable families who have been overpaid, it means a future of almost certain hardship repaying debt to the government. Revenue and Customs mistakes do not end here. The department turns out to have provided incorrect advice on the taxation of small pensions. The amount lost to The Exchequer each year is running at £135m.”
Proposals to cut 4p from the basic rate of income tax, to 16p in the pound, the lowest rate since 1916 have been introduced. Government pledged to remove loopholes exploited by the rich and foreign millionaires.
Debt charities are encouraging people suffering from debt to review their taxes and make sure they are not losing a refund. Many families are buckling under the strain of high mortgages and personal loans taken out in easier times. For these people a tax break could be the difference between solvency and bankruptcy.
