HC Deb 18 January 1999 vol 323 c366W
Mr. Webb

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the extent to which those who move from welfare to work as a result of the working families tax credit will(a) move into newly created jobs and (b) displace existing employees; and in the case of displacement, what assessment he has made of the characteristics of those who are likely to be displaced. [63660]

Dawn Primarolo

[holding answer 14 December 1998]: The Working Families Tax Credit and the associated Childcare Tax Credit are designed to (a) make work more attractive for those currently out of employment and (b) enable one and two parent families to increase the hours they work by assisting with costs of childcare. These are part of a range of new measures which should together assist people in moving from welfare to work. The Government are undertaking considerable preparatory work ahead of the introduction of WFTC in October, but no reliable assessment of either the number of people moving into newly created jobs or displacement of existing employees can be made.

Mr. Woodward

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of how many people will be eligible for the working families tax credit when it is fully operational. [63189]

Dawn Primarolo

[holding answer 11 January 1999]: It is estimated that in 2000–01, the first full year of the Working Families Tax Credit, about 1.3 million families will be in receipt of the credit.

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