About turn

News that the UK gov is considering the wisdom of continuing with universal benefits - perhaps looking at Child Benefit, winter fuel payments and even tax credits for the already wealthy.

An argument for universal child benefit was that it was almost a guarantee that the child would actually benefit from the money; going as it aways did to the mother. With so many households where both parents work, that is no longer the advantage it was. Perhaps it's also lost some of its value to those families - £20 a week for the first child and just £13 a week thereafter.

I remember it was always considered not worth the admin costs of a means tested scheme.

In Canada it varies according to province but higher incomes do reduce the amount payable. But separate claims are not actually needed; the payments resulting from the processing of tax returns.

Of course, everyone has to do a tax return every year and that's a bit of a pain. But with child benefits worth at least $300 a month per child it's a big reward.

Back to the UK. I was very surprised when winter fuel payments became the norm a few years ago as, for quite some time, it had become accepted that many pensioners were actually quite well off. It seemed folly to make such payments to all pensioners following recognition that so many were doing fine, thank you very much.

To pay a few hundred quid each year to already wealthy people was a waste but there were thousands of people (residents of care homes, those living in others' households etc) who didn't even incur heating costs at all, let alone increased costs and they receive these funds.

Still, it was electorally popular. Presumably it would be unpopular now?