Scrapping childcare vouchers "fundamentally wrong"

Ulster Unionist MLA John McCallister has said that the Labour government's plan to scrap childcare vouchers is "bad for the economy, bad for families and bad for public finances".

Speaking during an Assembly debate on the issue, Mr McCallister said: "Mr Brown's intention may be to give free childcare to 250,000 low-income families in England for the first time, but actions that he intends to take to deliver that outcome are indefensible and will do untold damage to hard-working parents throughout the United Kingdom, especially in Northern Ireland.

"Indeed the 250,000 free places referred to by the Prime Minister are for England only. That means that the Prime Minister will be stripping some 10,000 working parents in Northern Ireland of their tax exemptions, without anyone else benefiting. Indeed it seems that middle-income, hard-working families who are just above the threshold for means-tested benefits will lose most," the South Down MLA said.

"Removing the benefit is likely to have a greater impact on women, as there e is a danger that mothers will not return to work after maternity leave, which means that businesses will lose experienced employees.

"There is also a danger that families in which both parents work and who are just above the benefit threshold, will be forced to claim benefits if one parent drops out of employment to look after the children.

"Any savings that the Prime Minister hopes to make with this initiative could be lost due to extra benefit uptake. That will also put paid to the message that it pays to work.

"The Labour Party is again about to penalise people who want to provide for their families by suggesting to them that it will be more affordable to stay at home. That is bad for the economy, bad for families and bad for public finances.

"I want the Assembly to send a clear, strong and united message to the Labour Government that they have not taken into consideration the needs of Northern Ireland and that they are fundamentally wrong on this issue."