I'm a mum to two sets of twins. Labour's rumoured tax plans forget families like mine

Yes - you read that correctly. Two sets of twins. When people hear that, they usually respond with wide eyes and a breathless, “How do you manage?” The truth is: we manage just like every other family - with great effort, careful budgeting, and a lot of love.

But what we don’t need is a government that assumes a household like mine has “broad shoulders” simply because one parent earns above an arbitrary salary line. Especially when that one parent was motivated to advance their career to that salary threshold because the practicalities of two parents maximising their ambition and earning potential simply isn’t compatible with the logistical demands of a large family.

Rumours from the Labour Party suggest plans to increase council tax for households where one individual earns over £125,000. To some, that number sounds like the top of society - the comfortably wealthy. Yet that perception glosses over reality. There is a world of difference between a high salary and high wealth. And even more difference when that salary supports six people instead of two.

When your children arrive two at a time, every cost doubles: prams, car seats, nappies, and childcare. And don’t get me started on school shoes - four pairs at once, every September.

The so-called “middle class comfort” evaporates quickly when the government and society assess your financial capacity as if those little humans depending on you don’t exist.

This is where Labour’s proposal feels not just unfair, but profoundly disconnected from families like mine. It assumes that salaries alone determine wealth. That every pound earned is a pound free to spend. That having multiple children is some luxury choice rather than, in our case, biology’s unexpected blessing.

If Labour wants to tax fairly - and truly target those who can afford more - the measure should be based on household net wealth, not a crude individual salary threshold. And even then, it must take into account the number of dependents relying on that income. Disposable income shrinks dramatically when it’s used to feed, clothe, educate, and support twice as many children.

A single professional on £125,000 with no dependents? Yes - they are well-positioned to contribute a little more. But a family like mine, juggling childcare fees that dwarf many mortgages, running a washing machine so often that it might qualify as a family member and a weekly food shop at a budget supermarket costing around £400 a week ( thanks to growing teenage boys each eating like two men). We are not hoarding wealth. We are investing every penny in society’s future: our children.

Politicians love to praise families as the bedrock of the nation, the next generation of workers, the future economy. But the policies too often contradict the rhetoric. You can’t claim to champion working parents while punishing them for having children to raise.

My twins are loud, chaotic, wonderful reminders that life doesn’t always fit neatly into political categories. Policies should reflect that.

If Labour truly wants fairness, it must recognise family size as a key part of how disposable income is shaped. Otherwise, this budget risks being yet another instance where “broad shoulders” carry more than the government realises - and more than they should have to.

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Katy Walton is a mum to two sets of twins aged 15 and 9 in Wiltshire.

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