In plans set to be announced today, working mothers are to be given thousands of pounds a year towards the cost of childcare.
As part of Coalition plans to encourage parents to get back to work, Prime Minster David Cameron and his Deputy Nick Clegg are expected to reveal that parents can claim as much as £2,000 a year for each child from their tax bills to cover the cost of childminders and nurseries.
Recent statistics revealed that an average mother with one child needs to work for up to four months of the year simply to pay for childcare costs. Given these figures, it is not surprising that some mothers currently conclude it is not worth working at all.
The Government however, is looking to implement provisions that will enable mothers to get back to work and it has been suggested that the Coalition is looking at two options to implement new proposals.
One is the tax-deductible route for one third of childcare costs, but a simpler, flat-rate voucher system appears to be the preferred option. Final details are expected to be made public next week.
Whitehall officials say the scheme would more than compensate for the cut to child benefit payments, but it is not yet clear how the cost of the scheme will be met. Scrapping existing workplace childcare vouchers that give some parents a monthly sum tax-free will go some of the way though, according to reports.
In their press conference today, reform of childcare is expected to be noted as a key priority for the next two and a half years by David Cameron and Nick Clegg as they mark the halfway point in their Government.
