LORELY BURT HITS OUT AT GOVERNMENT'S DISGRACEFUL TAX CREDIT RECORD

6.00.14pm BST (GMT +0100) Wed 23rd May 2007

Local Liberal Democrat MP Lorely Burt has today hit out at the government's disgraceful tax credit record after the government published records showing they overpaid £1.8 millon of tax credits in three years to residents of Solihull and wrongly paid out over £9 billion across the country.

At the same time they failed to pay over 1000 Solihull families the tax credit awards they were entitled to. This amounted to a massive underpayment of £600,000.

Local MP, Lorely Burt commented,

"The government's record on tax credits here in Solihull is a disgrace. Gordon Brown has presided over a tax credits fiasco that is of his own making.

"Not only have taxpayers in Solihull lost out, but the government is now trying to claw back money from people on very low incomes - even when it was government mistakes which led to the errors.

"The government has overpaid residents of Solihull £1.8 million, and underpaid others £600,000.

"The government's shambolic tax credit system leads to uncertainty for many families in Solihull as they have no way of knowing what they will receive. I am campaigning for a simple system of fixed term awards of six months so that families know what they are getting and get what they are entitled to."