Eleanor Rathbone fought for child benefit to be universally paid to the mothers of children. This money was intended to be spent for the benefit children and she believed that this would be best achieved if the money went into 'the purse not the wallet'. By means testing this benefit, it is moving money away from mothers purse and ultimately moving it from children. This matters because we do not live in an ideal society. Many mothers are on low incomes in relation to their partners, and many family incomes are not shared equally. Child benefit has historically allowed mothers to provide for their children with a small amount of independence. Removal of this benefit will take away this independence and may ultimately increase a mothers relative poverty and domestic abuse.