Press Release
3 October 2011

Social policy charity CARE has today welcomed Iain Duncan Smith’s reaffirmation of the Government’s commitment to recognise marriage in the tax system before the next election. However, the charity has also warned the Government not to overlook making provision for the necessary I.T. changes.

Nola Leach, CARE’s Head of Public Affairs said:

‘Recognising marriage in the tax system has rightly been the cornerstone of the Conservative Party’s policy for addressing the ‘broken society’ since before the General Election. After the events of the summer it is clear that this remains as much a challenge as ever and that the need for them to implement their marriage policy commitment is now urgent.’

Leach explained,

‘The social science evidence is very clear that – not surprisingly – people who make a public, ‘till death us do part’ commitment to each other, recognised and supported in law, have (on average) a much more stable relationship than those who just move in together and see how it goes. Children born to married parents have only a 1 in 12 chance of finding themselves in a single parent family by the time they are 5, compared with nearly 1 in 2 of those born to parents who simply cohabit.1 This has massive public policy implications because the child development outcomes associated with those benefiting from a two- rather than a one-parent home environment, are so much stronger on every basis.’2

In this context, it certainly does not make sense to make it more difficult for people to marry in Britain than in other developed countries, yet this is sadly the current state of affairs.

Dan Boucher, CARE’s Director of Parliamentary Affairs explained,

‘Surveys regularly demonstrate that 90% of young people aspire to marry and yet the marriage rate does not reflect anything remotely like this. There is no virtue in making it more difficult for people to marry in this country than in other developed countries, but, in the context of our failure to recognise marriage in the tax system, the tax burden on one-earner married couples on an average wage with two children is now 39% greater than the OECD average.3 Moreover, according to current projections, the tax burden on these families is destined to rise so that it is more than 50% greater than the OECD average by 2012-13.’4

Mindful of both above considerations, Nola Leach claimed:

‘The Government should not wait to recognise marriage until the end of this parliament but make it a priority for the 2012 budget.’

Boucher concluded by setting out the importance of advancing the I.T. preparations:

‘One of the most important things to realise is that even if the law changed today, if the necessary preparatory I.T. changes had not been made by the HMRC, recognition of marriage in the tax system could not take effect. It is absolutely vital that the Government makes an assessment of how long making the I.T. changes will take and that they start work on this today if they have not already done so. The Exchequer Secretary was challenged about this during the Finance Bill debate in the Commons but made no response.’5

Notes:

1. Breakthrough Britain: Ending the Costs of Social Breakdown: Policy Recommendations to the Conservative Party, The Centre for Social Justice July 2007 p. 14 and 69
2. www.dwp.gov.uk/newsroom/ministers-speeches/2011/08-02-11.shtml
3. Draper, Beighton and Pearson, The Taxation of Families 2009/10, CARE, London, 2011, p. 31 and 32
4. Ibid.
5. Hansard, Report Stage Finance Bill Debate, 28 June 2011