The two-child benefit cap is coming up for vote among MPs, as pressure mounts for the government to end the program.
An amendment put up by the SNP regrets that the King’s Speech does not include a repeal of the cap and claims that the policy is forcing children into poverty.
Although a similar amendment proposed by backbench Labour MPs was not put to a vote, several MPs opted to support the SNP proposal instead.
With 174 votes, the government has a resounding majority, meaning it cannot lose. However, it’s a chance for a few Labour MPs to express their disagreement with the policy and increase pressure on the administration to change it.
The cap, imposed by the Conservatives in 2017, precludes nearly all parents from being eligible for child tax credits or Universal Credit if they have more than two children.
Following Labour’s resounding election success, anti-poverty NGOs have stepped up their calls for its repeal, with support from Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham and Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar.
But the administration has stated that it is not willing to do away with the cap in exchange for “unfunded promises.”
The prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, appreciated the “passion” of Labour MPs for the cause but stated that there was “no silver bullet” to solve child poverty.
21 MPs have signed the SNP amendment, including three independents and former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn. Other signatories include members of the Green Party, the SDLP, the Alliance Party, and Plaid Cymru.
Still, a few Labour MPs from the backbench might decide to vote in favor of the proposal.
Following the discussion of the King’s Speech, which outlined the government’s aims for the upcoming months, a vote is anticipated at 19:00 BST.
John McDonnell, a former shadow chancellor for Labour, declared he would support the SNP amendment.
He remarked, “I don’t like voting for other parties’ amendments, but I’m following Keir Starmer’s example as he said put country before party,” in a video that was uploaded on X.
Rosie Duffield and Kim Johnson are two of the nineteen Labour MPs who have endorsed an additional amendment on the matter.
Ms. Johnson, who has spearheaded Labour’s demands to do away with the policy, stated on Monday that the government needs to lay out a “clear timetable” for accomplishing this.
“It’s not a question of whether we can afford vital policies to alleviate child poverty, such as lifting the two-child cap, it’s a question of whether we can afford not to,” she stated.
“This punitive policy needs to be consigned to the dustbin of history where it belongs.”
“Keir Starmer must not fail his first major test in government by refusing to scrap the cap,” stated SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn. To combat child poverty and start bringing about the transformation that the people of Scotland were promised, this is the absolute minimum that is needed.
“Today, labor MPs have an option. By supporting the SNP proposal to remove the cap, they can help children escape poverty; otherwise, by maintaining the cap, they will force children to live in poverty.”
The government could not address the “dire inheritance” from the Conservatives overnight, according to Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall.
She did, however, add that Labour was “determined to make a huge difference” in addressing the problems faced by children.
According to an external assessment from the research tank Institute for Fiscal Studies, the government would eventually have to pay £3.4 billion a year to remove it, or about 3% of the working-age benefit expenditure.