How not to help children 1

TaxPayers Alliance Campaign

There has been much discussion today about the new report from the Children's Society, which claims to have found that today's children are less happy than the children of past generations. The report raises issues of parenting, education, child psychology and all sorts that I shan't cover here. On one area, though – taxes – it is frankly barmy.

The report's conclusions as to why children today are less happy and less balanced include:

i) because their parents don't have enough time to offer them the care and love they need. Due to financial pressures and enthusiasm to have successful careers they are – the report suggests – unable to commit sufficient quality time to their children.

ii) because their families don't have enough money.

iii) because their parents are getting divorced.

It is at this point that the authors start to go a bit off the rails. They decide that a large-scale programme of government initiatives and benefits increases is necessary, and therefore decide that taxes must rise.

Hang on a second, if taxes rise won't that mean that:

a) parents will have to work harder and longer, in order to provide for their kids, thus having less time to spend with them?

b) families will have less money?

c) that money worries, which are a leading cause of divorce, will rise?

Erm, yes, yes and yes.

It's bizarre – irrespective of your views on the moral, social and ethical views that the report takes on different issues. If the authors think that parents are too overstretched financially, resulting in more time spent at work, less money to bring up their kids and a higher rate of divorce, then their recommendation for government policy should have been to reduce the amount of money the tax man takes from people's pockets. Instead, this convoluted and statist solution risks simply increasing the misery of our children further.

TaxPayers Alliance

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Hardeep Singh

The report is actually justified as few if any social commentators have the guts to speak out about so called ‘modern’ society. In doing so they risk the wrath of the ever growing stroppy brigade that wants their cake and eat it too. The ones who really do put themselves ahead as much as their children by desperately needing a career, sometimes responsibility trumps the need for a corporate identity badge and a career is just that. Please don’t get me wrong I endorse hard work and people’s decision to work in any and whichever field of work they wish to but I am also an advocate of personal responsibility. When a point of imbalance is reached where work comes first then you have to ask yourself are you working harder to buy things for your children simply as a substitute for your own shortfalls in parenting skills or presence as a figurehead? These are difficult decisions to make on an individual basis but nevertheless they are issues that must be taken one way or another. The very acceptance if not celebration of divorce is no laughing matter, just look at the fall out on children, yet the same people spend longer working for a company than they do with a partner. In the end what value of person are you now? We can all ‘look the part’ and fool ourselves and those around that we are some kind of high flyer but underneath the smart appearance and corporate image at work we are just the same underneath, responsible adults… to our our families, neighbours, friends even ourselves …. How many people have racked up massive debts simply by going out, shopping, holidays when they could have spent that on their children for a better quality of education….? Another example of insular thinking I’d say.
However at the danger of pouring petrol onto a fire we most certainly don’t need goevrnment to stick it’s nose into this issue. People should be taking responsibility for themselves and look at the bigger picture and take a step back from the instant microwave gratification options in life and start thinking about longer term quality.
When people get split up or divorced is it the children’s fault? Alot of these adults who are now getting divorced at the drop of the hat more likely than not had the luxury of being raised in a stable home where both parents stayed put. Now that it’s their turn to stand on guard duty they simply “don’t feel like it”, “need to find themselves” or just “need something new”, goodness sake you’re not buying a car! The rest of the world hasn’t adopted this mcdonalds drive-thru culture of relationships, here today gone tomorrow. It’s sewing the seeds of great failure in coming generations.
The pursuit of all things digital and technologically based is also being thrust on children with the usual associated excuse of “well that’s the future”. I fear it’s more likely “it’s convienent and does what as a parent/guardian I cannot do”, disappointing to say the least! (The future is education) Someone born in 1970 can still be a technical guru so growing up with the technology at hand isn’t always the case. Look at India they are a technology powerhouse yet most grew up in relative poverty. The problem is the leadership i.e. the so called and loose term of ‘adult’ who can’t seem to control him/herself and thus is unable to execute any form of leadership in their lives let alone that of their children.
Government cannot help and will make matters worse best for them to stick to what they do best wasting tax payers money but hopefully at a slower rate ! -