£ 8M CHILD BENEFIT BILL FOR SUPER- SIZE FAMILIES
A GROWING number of families with nine or more children cost British taxpayers £ 8.6million a year in benefits, official figures have revealed.
There are 1,205 such families and taxpayers’ groups warned that people resent paying for those who choose to have large families they cannot afford.
Harry Davis, campaign manager at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “It’s unfair to expect taxpayers to subsidise a lifestyle for others which they cannot enjoy themselves.
“Many hard- pressed families are forced to make extremely difficult choices about what they can and can’t afford.
“Those relying on taxpayer- funded benefits should not be immune from those considerations.”
The new figures, released by HM Revenue & Customs, reveal that big families account for child benefit payments of £ 165,000 a week.
The number of families claiming for nine children or more also rose by 3.5 per cent in the past year, from 1,165 to 1,205.
There are now 15 households claiming £ 200 a week for 13 or more youngsters.
Simon Ross, chief executive of the social research group Population Matters, said: “This increase in larger families is concerning.
“The cost is not just benefits but in pressure on housing, schools, healthcare and travel.”
Child benefit is paid at £ 20.50 for the oldest child and £ 13.55 for every subsequent infant. This gives a household with nine children £ 6,775 a year. Data from the Office for National Statistics shows that in 2014 almost 11,000 mothers gave birth who already had at least five children. And 247 women with at least 10 children already had babies. One mum was aged just 25.
Cheryl Prudham, 33, of Gravesend, Kent, had her 12th child last year and was said to be claiming thousands in benefits with husband Robert.
The Tory Party wants child benefit restricted to the first three children. That would save £ 300million a year. Population Matters would like to see a two- child limit.
Last night a Government spokesman insisted: “The benefit cap has put an end to the days of sky- high benefit claims.
“We are bringing welfare spending under control, making work pay and ensuring our welfare system is fair to those who use it and those who pay for it.”
CHILDREN are both a joy and a blessing. The arrival of a new baby is a cause for celebration. And it can be wonderful to grow up in a large family – turbulent and noisy at times but also wonderfully supportive.
Some women love having many children. As one baby grows they crave another. And why shouldn’t they have one?
The answer to that is simple: it is fine to have as many children as you want providing you are able to support them and do not expect other hard- pressed taxpayers to pick up the bill.
For today we report that Britain’s enormous families – those with nine or more children – are supported by the state to the tune of £ 8.6million a year. And the number of these families is growing. A household with nine children receives £ 6,775 a year in child benefits alone – and that’s just the start of the state support on offer.
So while children are indeed a joy and a blessing, they are also a responsibility that should not be taken on lightly. Pregnancy is easily avoided these days. Huge families do not happen by accident. Anyone who cannot afford to bring up a child should simply not have one.
Occasionally the Government has made noises about limiting the number of children eligible for child benefit to, say, the first three.
This would no doubt cause howls of outrage from the Left but it might make the feckless and fecund think twice before bringing another child into the world.
Children are not a right. They are, as every decent parent knows, a daily duty.