Views
No end in sight to tax credit fiasco - for The Inverness Courier
THE tax credit system has been established to help supplement the income of people in low wage jobs, or with family responsibilities.
Sadly, as far too many families in Inverness can testify, because of the way the system to deliver this laudable objective has been set up, it is in causing real hardship and debt for many people.
The early part of last week's House of Commons recess was dominated by this issue, both in my role as local MP and as
Liberal Democrat spokesman on Work and Pensions, and so my week in the Highlands was cut short on this occasion.
Although Parliament does not meet during the recess, the Government carries on as normal.
Last week's big news was the publication of statistics showing how the tax credit system is performing.
The answer, not for the first time, is that it is failing many of the people who most need its help. To make matters worse, there is little evidence that progress is being made with improving the situation.
The figures show that over the past two years £4 billion has been overpaid to families, who are then asked to repay thousands of pounds, most often through no fault of their own. In the Highlands, 8200 families were affected in the 2004-05 year.
Nearly half of all tax credit payments are incorrect, and the high costs involved with administering the complicated system are only increased by the need to return to so many cases.
Ultimately, the Government is forced to admit fault for many of the mistakes and then the debt must simply be written off by the taxpayer.
No MP can be in any doubt about the difficulties which this process causes for people who are caught up in the bureaucratic mess.
Living on a tight budget can be hard enough, but in the Highlands alone it is far from uncommon for discrepancies well in excess of £1000 to cause great distress and very real difficulty.
It is very important for people to be able to plan ahead with their finances, but this system in fact causes a "financial rollercoaster" disrupting family budgets and forcing people into debt.
Worst of all, overpayments are collected automatically and not investigated unless a complaint is made. I would like to see all overpayments checked before repayment is asked for - from the dozens of cases I have dealt with I know that many are down to bureaucratic or computer mistakes.
The situation is chronic - every year the figures are damning, and every year ministers assure Parliament that improvements will be made. Ultimately, though, this is the Government's own system, and it has failed.
What is needed now is a complete change of leadership. Dawn Primarolo, the paymaster general, has been responsible for this system for more than seven years, and her assurances have long since been devalued by the facts.
It is time that she was replaced by someone with a fresh perspective and the authority to make some changes.
The Prescott affair
Elsewhere in Government, it seems that less consequential things dominate ministerial thinking.
After being caught by the papers playing croquet on his lawn, John Prescott has announced that he will forgo his "grace and favour" home in the country.
The hope is that this will allow him to keep what remains of his job, not to mention the associated salary.
People in the Highlands will be more interested in the role of one of the new Cabinet subcommittees which the deputy prime minister will chair.
Tasked with setting out the future of the Post Office network, it will have huge importance for communities across the Highlands at a time when local branches face an unprecedented threat.
The Government's recent track-record on this issue is far from encouraging - from the removal of the TV Licensing contract, to the potentially disastrous proposals to end the post office card account without much concern for any successor.
At least the creation of this committee makes one thing clear. Ministers sometimes seek to distance themselves from responsibility for post offices, despite the network's involvement in a number of Government services.
If this is now John Prescott's job description, he has a chance to redeem himself by banging ministerial heads together to get some better answers in the future.
Visit the Commons
I was delighted a couple of weeks ago to welcome a group of 25 pupils from Kingussie High School to the House of Commons. They enjoyed seeing Parliament at work (and seeing their MP questioning ministers).
Despite all of the recent security concerns, Parliament is very open to the public and it is very easy to organise a tour of the Palace of Westminster. So if you are coming to London and would like to see the House of Commons, please contact my office on 01463 711280.
Posted on: 06/06/2006
