Alteration of Personal Reliefs

Part of Clause 11 – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 10 June 1974.

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Photo of Mr Joel Barnett Mr Joel Barnett , Heywood and Royton 12:00, 10 June 1974

Whether we can deal with it by a tax credit scheme is an entirely different matter. We debated it at great length in a Select Committee, of which the hon. Member for Eastleigh (Mr. Price) has spoken. It would depend on the kind of tax credit system. All that I and a number of my right hon. and hon. Friends said in the Select Committee was that the tax credit scheme that the previous Government sought to introduce was wholly unsatisfactory to us in many ways. However, that is not what we are dealing with now. It is certainly true that a form of child endowment, which was envisaged in that tax credit system, would help. But it was made clear in the Select Committee that there is no need for a tax credit system to have a child endowment. That was made clear when it was recognised that the child grant cash payments would be made payable to the mother and would not be part of the tax system. Therefore, it can be done. Indeed, the previous Government accepted and recognised that point. They had in mind to introduce the child endowment system before the tax credit system was introduced. The two matters are separate and nothing necessarily to do with a tax credit system.