Child Benefit as is should be scrapped and replaced by Free Uniforms, school books, free child care ensuring that the benefit stays universal and that it actually contributes to the welfare of the child!

Tax the benefit to those who don’t need it in the first place. What a cop out. If you don’t need it you shouldn’t get it at all

Taxing benefit? What?

One branch of government hands out money and another branch takes the same money away?

That’s got to be the stupidest yet.

That line about means testing being too expensive is absolute bollox. How come you can be means tested for any other welfare payment like basic dole, rent allowance and even the medical card, not a bother. Why can it not be done through the existing systems?

That’s a good idea surely? Tax the higher earners and not the lower earners?? Ah but no.. They’ll have to think about that one … that’ll take some serious thinking … and then they’ll steal from the poor again in the Dec budget because they don’t want their friends to suffer… ie.. Not the middle/lower class

Fianna Fail have zero credibility on matters regarding the economy indeed and social issue too. Never forget that it was FF who caused this mess in the first place. Micheal Martin would have us think he was an innocent bystander during 12 years at the cabinet table.

The per child rate should decrease the more kids you have.

Gesture politics!!! Now we know for sure what FF think about taxing the wealthy! Surely it’s more about social justice than the amount of money actually saved! All this crap about how it’s too expensive to administrate! It’s only smarter of adjusting tax credits! My credits change every year as things stand, so how can This be deemed too expensive? The greed in this country knows no limits! It’s disgusting!

Michael Martin, you and your party are irrelevant, your party wasn’t even capable of gesture politics, it left a wake of angry disillusioned tax payers who have pretty much lost any trust in any government.

Doing this may not have a huge financial impact, but every penny counts and the vast majority of people who are middle and working class will see this as progress.

Stop sounding pointless opposition just because you like the sound of your own voice.

Leave the child benefit universal as is, any means testing would result in a bureaucratic nightmare that would waste taxpayers money and possibly result in those who need it losing out. Use the tax system to make up the difference by bringing in a new income tax for high earners €100,000+.

There is one neighbour who is fairly poor and has no perspectives in life, has 3 kids, sits on welfare. Then there is the other neighbour who studied hard, has been working his ass off and earns 100K a year to support his 3 kids.

The police come to the latter and say: “You will pay child support to your neighbour.”

“Why? I’m not the father!”

“The best excuse we can come up with is because you can and there’s nobody else around to steal it from. Also, there is a sentiment in the country against successful people, they’re the baddies now.”

People on €75k a year and more should NOT receive child benefit, In the UK from january 2013 people on £42k a year and more will no longer receive child benefit. Also the government should give child benefit up to 3 children.

Ideas!

cut child benefit after the 6th child,

cut child benefit for those on over 150k

half benefit for those between 100 and 150k

Cut ministers and Tds expenses,

Ministers and Tds to take a 50% pay cut.

You get wealthy by paying 0 to 20% taxes on dividends and capital gains, just ask Bono or Michael O’Leary.

Don’t means test the current child benefit – abolish completely and start again. With revenue and well fare systems synchronized it should be possible to credit those who need it. Anyone outside the earnings cap that feel they need it should be allowed to make their case…

@ John ‘trips’ Gallen.. Would that be the higher earners or the lower earners you’d be hinting at there?

They should leave it alone yes I did just say that!!!! Why because before we go cutting our nose off despite our faces we should look at the facts , this is the ONLY payment made to wards the future tax payers it is a investment not a charity payment as some suggest. Unlike our eu counterparts were they receive a payment like Child benefit they also get free health care, education help with child care fees and tax credits or breaks if you have children. Will we see a move towards this No instead those who really need it will lose it. If there is a problem with earners receiving it then make sure they are paying the right amount of tax. What will the impact be if they do go ahead,,, how many mothers will be forced to give up work, how many will take their children out of child care = less tax and longer dole queues. It will creat poverty traps, widen child poverty again even further, Remember as well that there is only a small % of high earners getting it so it won’t save what they want how low will they set the bar??? It’s all about collecting revenue not about making the system better for all. so no I do not think its the right time for changes to child benefit

I figure people’s idea of social justice here is for people who earn a good living to pay other men’s alimony?

If so, this social justice is a perversion of good old normal justice.

Guess what the people of Ireland will do about this? Nothing! The goalposts are moving everyday with this troika/IMF programme and we are blindly following it like sheep. Give it to everybody or nobody all kids are equal in this country as far as I can remember.