Raising children in UK makes parents poor

London: With British couples on the average wage spending nearly a third of their income on childcare expenses, the UK is one of the worst nations in the world in terms of childcare expenses.As per reports, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is planning to introduce a £4 billion cash injection for the UK's childcare system, providing 30 hours per week of free childcare to parents of infants and toddlers instead of just infants and toddlers as is the case currently.Couples in the UK earning the minimum wage and having two children in grades two and three spend the joint second-highest percentage of their average income on childcare expenses among the 42 nations the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development evaluated. Only Switzerland, with 47%, comes close to it.In the same situation, German spouses reportedly spend just 1% of their income on childcare, compared to 3% in Austria and 5% in Sweden.The UK ranks joint last in the world for childcare expenses when the couple's income falls below average, with both parents earning 67% of the average wage.Even though the percentage decreases to 15% of income if both parents work at minimum wage, the UK still ranks second to last after the Czech Republic.Couples in Estonia are reported to spend -2% of their income on childcare, which is likely due to government assistance given the country's declining birth rate. Spending in non-OECD nations Malta, Italy, and Latvia is all zero percent total.The UK performs marginally better for a single parent with two children, with net childcare expenses amounting to 7% of the salary, which is the 12th highest of any evaluated country.More than 27,000 UK parents participated in a Pregnant Then Screwed survey, which revealed that 2/3 of them spend more on childcare than on rent or a mortgage, and that 10% of parents have quit their jobs because of childcare-related problems.One of the main problems with the UK's childcare system is that childcare providers must pay business rates, which, according to childcare organisations, "are an unfair tax on space intended for shops, warehouses, and factories, not the places that give children space to learn, grow, and develop." At the onset of lockdown in 2020, nurseries received a payment holiday.Since local government funding for daycare is not restricted, it may be applied to other aspects of the educational system.In today's budget which at the time of writing this news is being presented in the house, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is expected to reveal a £4 billion expansion of free childcare for children aged one and two in England.It comes amid wider reforms of the sector including subsidies to childcare providers to help them give free hours and a changing of the staff-to-child ratios so one worker can look after five, rather than four, children.It adopts strategies adopted by nations across the ocean. President Joe Biden of the United States has stated his intention to make pre-school care and instruction available to all children for the two years before they enter primary school, while Canada has declared a C$30 billion (£18 billion) investment in a national childcare programme.Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News,India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.