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To: George Osborne

Stop the proposed £5bn cuts to child tax credits.

This campaign has ended.

Do not cut child tax credits.

This will hit the poorest hard in the short term with no guarantees that the lost benefits will be made up. Vulnerable families will have to work longer hours to maintain their current levels of income or loose out.

Why is this important?

The government is considering reducing tax credits for millions of working families as part of its £12bn welfare cuts.

Changes would cut entitlements for about 3.7 million low-income families by about £1,400 a year, the IFS said, and has calculated that for the poorest families it would mean a reduction of £845 per child per year.

Mr Osborne's political allies are saying the move will increase 'incentives to work' and Senior Tory sources are trying to suggest that tax credits have allowed big companies to get away with paying employees lower wages.

During the general election, Prime Minister David Cameron promised he would not be cutting many benefits - including the state pension, pensioner benefits, and child benefit. It appears this didn't include child tax credits!

On a recent appearance on BBC Two's Newsnight, David Skelton, director of the Conservative pressure group Renewal, stated that he agreed the tax credit bill could be lowered.

"you have a lot of employers who are basically getting subsidy from the state for low paid work and we'd like to see a shift towards those employers who can afford to pay the living wage to pay the living wage." Mr Skelton said.

The conservatives believe that this move will encourage workers to work more hours if they can, or if they are working part time at the moment. And also get to see a higher minimum wage over time as well.

What is apparent is that this will hit the poorest hard in the short term with no guarantees that the lost benefits will be made up. Vulnerable families will have to work longer hours to maintain their current levels of income or loose out.

We propose that these cuts do not go ahead.

Stephen Timms, Labour's acting work and pensions secretary, said plans to cut £12bn from social security would hit "working families and children hard".

"It's clear that David Cameron and George Osborne's plan will make working families less secure," he said.

These cuts are an idea that is among many being considered now as the Tories wrestle with how to deliver their pledge to cut £12bn from Britain's £220bn budget for benefits and tax credits. We need to act now to show how many of us would be disappointed in such a decision.

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Updates

2015-11-25 14:19:15 +0000

Cuts scrapped! thank you everyone for you support here and on other petitions against the cuts. A small win in a larger ideological battle. Lets keep vigilant against other areas that might be in danger of attack. Thanks again. Mark.

2015-08-16 08:19:30 +0100

1,000 signatures reached

2015-06-23 12:24:04 +0100

500 signatures reached

2015-06-22 15:49:54 +0100

https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/child-tax-credit is now at 143,000 signatures! Lets keep it going until its top of the agenda.

2015-06-22 12:16:35 +0100

So glad to see this getting the attention it deserves.

https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/child-tax-credit

I will happily bow down to the folks at 38 Degrees, their extensive mailing list and resources, and ability to take this onward. Last I checked this was at 34,000+ signatures and counting... and its still growing fast! Share and sign to be part of this essential feedback loop to the decision makers at the top.

2015-06-22 11:30:51 +0100

Just found this other petition which covers the same subject but has gained more traction. Please consider signing both! https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/child-tax-credit

2015-06-20 23:30:11 +0100

We've reached 100 signatures! the first of many more to come. Please keep sharing this with your friends and family, We've a long way to go before we can make a difference!

2015-06-20 12:07:11 +0100

100 signatures reached

2015-06-20 11:54:25 +0100

Only 2 signatures to go before our 1st 100! Please support us on Facebook as well here; https://www.facebook.com/Stop5bncuts

2015-06-16 06:49:16 +0100

50 signatures reached

2015-06-13 14:01:20 +0100

25 signatures reached

2015-06-12 07:52:48 +0100

10 signatures reached