One in Five UK Lords Face Chop After Blocking Tax Credit Cuts

Some 165 of the 822 active members of the House of Lords could be fired blocking a proposition on tax credits by the chancellor of the exchequer, according to local media.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – A fifth of UK House of Lords peers can be fired after blocking a proposition on tax credits by the chancellor of the exchequer, local media reported.

Some 165 of the 822 active members of the House of Lords could be affected by the plan, which was proposed by the former leader of the upper house, Lord Strathclyde, in response to UK Prime Minister David Cameron’s request to investigate the House of Lords after it banned tax credit cuts, The Independent said Sunday.

The House of Lords blocked Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne’s 4-billion-pound ($6 billion) tax credit cuts proposition, despite passing it to the House of Commons. Cameron claimed that it had caused a "constitutional crisis" as financial measures approved by the House of Commons should not be blocked by the upper house, the newspaper added.

Lord Strathclyde is expected to present a final report on the 20-percent cut in the number of peers to the UK prime minister before Christmas.

According to research conducted by the UNISON public service union on October 3, more than 2.7 million working families with some 5.2 million children across the United Kingdom could be affected by government budget cuts. Study findings suggest that low-middle income households with children could lose up to 3,000 pounds a year if the cuts are implemented.