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Biden pledges $300 monthly coronavirus payment for families with young children

Biden campaign says measures would last 'as long as economic conditons require' (Getty Images)
Biden campaign says measures would last 'as long as economic conditons require' (Getty Images)

Democrat presidential candidate Joe Biden has pledged to give families with young children a federal payment of $250-$300 per month to help deal with financial hardship during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The proposal, announced six weeks out from November's election, is a temporary extension of the existing child tax credit (CTC) system, which gives tax breaks to parents raising kids.

House Democrats used the Heroes Act to approve the plan back in May, but it will only come into effect if it passes the Senate, currently controlled by Republicans.

Under the plans, families could claim up to $3,000 for children under 17, with an additional $600 for kids under the age of six.

Detailing the plan on its website on Thursday, Mr Biden's campaign said the measure would come into effect in 2021 and last "as long as economic conditons require".

"Biden's CTC expansion will provide thousands of dollars of tax relief for middle-class households," the former vice president's team said of the plan.

"It will also help the most-hard pressed working families avoid poverty and attain greater economic security."

The announcement came as lawmakers on Captiol Hill continued to negotiate on the deatails of the second coronavirus relief package, with millions of Americans still out of work.

House speaker Nancy Pelsoi on Thursday warned that Democrats are refusing to budge on the $2.2 trillion figure put forward in their plan.

Republicans recently put forward their own $500billion deal which was rejected by the Democrats - talks remain ongoing.

Meanwhile, some 860,000 US citizens applied for or unemployment benefits last week - a drop from the previous week, but still a historially high figure, which highlights the economic impact the pandemic has had on the US.

The Labor Department said Thursday that US. jobless claims fell by 33,000 form the previous week. But 12.6 million Americans are collecting traditional unemployment benefits, compared with just 1.7 million a year ago.

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