MINISTERS have promised to investigate complaints that Worcestershire families have not been able to claim their tax credits.

The pledge follows pressure from Mid-Worcestershire MP Peter Luff, who lambasted the Government in a debate yesterday.

Mr Luff raised the problems of four constituents who have not received child tax credits and working families tax credits to which they are entitled.

He said: "My wife is my constituency secretary, and hardly a day seems to go by without a telephone call from another family in desperate circumstances.

"It is interesting to note that so many of these cases are dealt with on the telephone because their sheer complexity is overwhelming.

"They would overwhelm me - I cannot cope with my tax return, and I certainly could not cope with the working families tax credit if it got into the sorts of difficulties that my constituents have so often experienced.

One of the constituents has been accused of receiving "overpayments" - though she says she hasn't - which meant she failed to receive her credits at Christmas or Easter.

"It is an absolute scandal for the poor woman," Mr Luff said.

The Economic Secretary to the Treasury, John Healey, said he would pass the details of the cases on for investigation by Paymaster General Dawn Primarolo.

There has been a catalogue of complaints against the Inland Revenue since new child tax credits and working tax credits were introduced in March 2003, with hundreds of thousands of families failing to receive the benefits.

A £53m helpline was set up to deal with claimants' confusion with the system.