Bill English MP
National Party Finance Spokesman

28 July 2008

Giving certainty to family incomes

National Party Finance spokesman Bill English says National’s decision not to change Working For Families delivers certainty for struggling families.

“A careful analysis of Working For Families reveals there would have only been small savings had National opted to remove those on higher incomes from the scheme.

“Taking higher-income families out of WFF saves very little money, at least in the short term.

“As at 31 March 2007, around 1,000 families earning over $100,000 were receiving WFF, and payments to those families totalled only $1.1 million.

“Any policy to take higher-income families out of WFF would only affect a handful of families, and they would be families with four or more children.

"In this uncertain economic climate, we want to give all families certainty about their incomes.”

Mr English says National also remains committed to a programme of tax cuts to be announced in the first week of the election campaign.

“But in a display of what can only be described as naked politicking, Michael Cullen now seems to believe that National’s move to create certainty for families will break the bank.

“He must know that his criticisms are unfounded, given the minor fiscal impact that removing higher income earners from Working For Families would have had.”

ENDS

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