Tax credits row

Chancellor George Osborne has come under fire over his plans to cut tax credits, which the Treasury estimated will save the exchequer £4.6bn in 2015/16, rising to £5.8bn in 2020/21. He faced criticism first from the public and later from MPs of both sides in a heated parliamentary debate on Tuesday. Osborne first introduced the policy in this year’s Summer Budget, and is reported to be determined to push the cuts through.

The backlash extended to the House of Lords, where cross-bench peer Baroness Meacher initially moved to propose a ‘fatal motion’ on Monday 26 October to stop the legislation. However, having withdrawn the ‘motion to regret’ for the Tax Credits (Income Thresholds and Determination of Rates) (Amendment) Regulations, SI 2015/Draft, Meacher is expected instead to propose delaying a decision on the legislation until after MPs have had another chance to debate it. Meanwhile, the Work and Pensions Committee is holding a select committee hearing on tax credits at 3:45pm on 26 October.