Unwed parent spaying more tax

UNMARRIED parents who live together are being forced to pay more income tax than their married counterparts yet if they find themselves on benefits, they are treated like a married couple and have fewer individual entitlements.

Treoir, the Federation for Unmarried Parents and their Children, has called on the Government to change this inconsistency, pointing to the fact that 60% of unmarried parents live together at the same address.

The Department of Finance acknowledges the contradiction, but says the aim of the welfare and tax code is to uphold the constitutional right of married couples not to be treated less favourably than unmarried couples.