The chickens come home to roost

There’s more trouble for Gordon Brown this morning over his decision to scrap the 10p tax rate for low-income earners. The Treasury Select committee – lead by the Labour MP John McFall – has the following to say:

“The group of main losers from the abolition of the 10p rate of income tax – those below the age of 65 with an income under £18,500 who are in childless households – seem an unreasonable target for raising additional tax revenues to fund the benefits of tax simplification and meeting the needs of children in poverty.”

It looks increasingly like this issue will drive a wedge between Brown and his party. But what should really concern our Prime Minister is how the public will react. Low-income earners are paying for a moment of cheap, political grandstanding. And they’re doing so at time when they need all the fiscal help they can get.