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Charity 'alarmed' at plan to cut benefits for families with over two children


Dr Rosemary Keenan

Dr Rosemary Keenan

Proposals by Work and Pensions Secretary, the Catholic MP Iain Duncan Smith,  to cut benefits to parents with more than two children would have a grave impact on the health and well being of those most vulnerable in our society, a leading Catholic child welfare agency warned today.

The 'two child' benefits cap proposal has sparked comparisons with China's 'one child' population control policy and has met with great opposition from both within parliament and from charities. But Conservative MPs are backing the plan, saying that the welfare system should not encourage families to have more children.

Mr Duncan Smith said his plan would apply to new claims rather than families already receiving benefits. No decision has been taken yet, but if the proposal is voted in, it would also apply to child tax credits and income support as well as child benefit.

Dr Rosemary Keenan, Director of the Catholic Children's Society, Westminster, said: “The impact of government proposals to cut benefits to families with over a certain number of children is alarming. At the Catholic Children’s Society (Westminster), we have calculated that there are somewhere between 650,000 to 685,000 children living in poverty within the Diocese of Westminster alone.

"We know that 6 out of 10 children living in poverty actually live with a working parent on a low income which is below 60% of median income before housing costs. In work poverty arises because of low pay, the short term nature of employment contracts and the existence of so many part-time jobs. The precarious nature of modern employment results in a loss of income security for many families. Under such circumstances, there has to be a safety net for all families regardless of the number of children they have."

She warned: "A cap on the number of children may well result in an increase in the number of abortions and children being taken into care because their parents cannot afford to look after them. What started as a banking crisis has resulted in our children paying a very high price for the mistakes of others, this does not seem fair and it is not doing the right thing, nor does it serve the Common Good.”

Earlier this year, Caritas Social Action Network (CSAN) stated: "Child benefit exists to provide for the basic needs of children; imposing limitations on the basis of family size will inevitably deprive children from larger families of essential support. The level of benefits available to these families will already be restricted by a cap on the size of homes that can be rented using local housing allowance and by the overall benefit cap, which will encompass child benefit despite strong opposition from the UK’s major children’s charities. Making further reductions by completely removing child benefit from certain children may realistically jeopardise their wellbeing.

"It is important for the focus to remain on supporting children’s health, nutrition and other fundamental requirements, rather than setting arbitrary limits which will disproportionately impact upon parents of larger families who have fallen into difficult financial circumstances"

 For more information on the Catholic Children's Society Westminster see: www.cathchild.org.uk/

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