§ Mr. WicksTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the revenue raised from taxing child benefit where either parent is a higher rate taxpayer and the administrative cost of doing this. [19698]
§ Sir George YoungThe Government are committed to maintaining child benefit, which recognises that all families with children face additional costs.
Now that husbands and wives are taxed independently, it would be administratively complex to tax child benefit in a way which fairly reflected family circumstances.
However, were child benefit to be taxed, the yield for 1995–96 from taxing it at the higher rate for lone parents who are higher rate taxpayers, and for married couples where either the husband or wife is a higher rate taxpayer, would be about £320 million.
The cost of administration would depend on the method used to collect the tax.