Top Labour women f ight for childcare tax breaks.Byline: Kirsty Walker Political Correspondent GORDON BROWN is facing a revolt among female Labour MPs over his controversial plans to axe tax relief on childcare. A powerful coalition of former ministers yesterday wrote to the Prime Minister warning that the measures would penalise Verb 1. penalise - impose a penalty on; inflict punishment on; "The students were penalized for showing up late for class"; "we had to punish the dog for soiling the floor again" penalize, punish those on low incomes. The group, led by former Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt Patricia Hope Hewitt (born 2 December 1948) is a British politician. She is the Labour Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester West and the former Secretary of State for Health. , accused Mr Brown of removing an 'effective and popular' benefit from hard-working families. The letter also warns that Mr Brown risks a backlash in crucial marginal seats if he presses ahead with the plans which benefit more than 330,000 families. Earlier this year Mr Brown announced that Labour would abolish childcare vouchers, which provide tax relief for working families. A family on the basic tax rate, where both parents claim the tax relief, could lose up to [pounds sterling]1,924 a year. Those with incomes over [pounds sterling]43,000 could lose out by [pounds sterling]2,390. The Prime Minister has pledged that the money from phasing out the vouchers will go towards providing 250,000 two-year-olds from 'modest or middle incomes' with ten hours of free childcare a week in five years. He has claimed that the scheme disproportionately benefits higher rate taxpayers, with around a third of the tax relief going to those who earn more than [pounds sterling]43,000. He has even claimed that families were using the savings on their childcare to pay for horse-riding lessons. But the decision has triggered protests from working mothers, many of whom say they will no longer be able to afford to work if the vouchers are scrapped. More than 70 MPs, including 43 Labour, have signed a Commons motion opposing Mr Brown's plans. More than 75,000 people, mostly women, have also signed a Downing Street Downing Street, Westminster, London, England. On the street are the British Foreign Office and, at No. 10, the residence of the first lord of the Treasury, who is usually (although not necessarily) the prime minister of Great Britain. petition lambasting the decision. The petition is now the highest ranked on the No 10 website. In their letter, the MPs accuse Mr Brown of using out-of-date figures and warn that three-quarters of those who will lose the tax relief are basic rate taxpayers. The letter says: 'Surely this is not the time for us to be removing a key support from hard-working families, at the very point at which we need them at their most engaged and productive to fuel the recovery from recession.' The signatories include former education secretary Estelle Morris Estelle Morris, Baroness Morris of Yardley, PC (born 17 June 1952) is a British Labour politician and member of the House of Lords. She was briefly a member of the Cabinet. Estelle Morris was born to a strongly political family. , former chief whip The Chief Whip is a political office in some legislatures assigned to an elected member whose task is to administer the whipping system that ensures that members of the party attend and vote as the party leadership desires. Hilary Armstrong, former children's minister Beverly Hughes, former women's minister Meg Munn, former Europe minister Caroline Flint and former transport minister Sally Keeble. Childcare experts say that more than half of the families who claim the childcare vouchers work in the public sector. k.walker@dailymail.co.uk CAPTION(S): Leader: Ex-minister Patricia Hewitt |
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