Nigel Farage's big announcement will pile more pressure on PM
No U-turn comes without a political cost.
This weekend, it has become clear there is a price to pay for Sir Keir Starmer's decision to row back on winter fuel payment cuts.
One MP said in a text message: "We all want to see more", while former prime minister Gordon Brown told Sky News this week the two-child benefit cap was "pretty discriminatory" and could be scrapped.
The cap, which prevents parents from claiming child tax credit or universal credit for more than two children, is a symbolic sore for Labour that saw seven MPs suspended from the party last year.
Now it's back to cause more trouble.
A Downing Street source suggests little has changed in the last week, and looking at the cap has always been part of the (now delayed) Child Poverty Strategy.
1:22
But, beyond the whispers behind the scenes, one thing has overtly changed this weekend - growing pressure from Nigel Farage.
We expect Reform UK to announce this week that it will reinstate winter fuel payments and drop the cap.
Farage is parking his tanks on Labour's lawn, trying to tap into working-class votes on uncomfortable territory for Starmer.
How would they pay for it? A combination of closing asylum hotels, cutting aid, and scrapping net-zero targets, the party says.
Headline-grabbing move
The beauty of not being in power is not having to make all the sums add up right now, and it is a headline-grabbing announcement that will, at the very least, reignite the conversation about the two-child cap.
It's also a reminder that Reform UK, who were beaten by Labour in 89 out of the 98 constituencies they came second in last year, have set their sights beyond the Conservatives.
As for the Tories, who introduced the measure in 2017, leader Kemi Badenoch is clear, saying: "If you can't afford to have lots of children, then you shouldn't do so".
1:26
Blue water between Tories and Reform UK
So, there is blue water between the Conservatives and Reform, but it's the prime minister and his party that Farage is targeting now, and Labour is unclear on where it stands.
Deputy leader Angela Rayner told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips that "lifting any measures that alleviate poverty is not a bad idea".
With the spending review fast approaching, Starmer and Chancellor Rachel Reeves will be working out the actual cost, beyond the political one, of rowing back on winter fuel payment cuts.
But will the anger that the policy ignited among some Labour MPs end there? Or will it move to another uncomfortable subject?
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Glasgow Times
41 minutes ago
- Glasgow Times
Rayner faces Labour backbench call to ‘smash' existing housebuilding model
Labour's Chris Hinchliff has proposed a suite of changes to the Government's flagship Planning and Infrastructure Bill, part of his party's drive to build 1.5 million homes in England by 2029. Mr Hinchliff has proposed arming town halls with the power to block developers' housebuilding plans, if they have failed to finish their previous projects. He has also suggested housebuilding objectors should be able to appeal against green-lit large developments, if they are not on sites which a council has set aside for building, and put forward a new duty for authorities to protect chalk streams from 'pollution, abstraction, encroachment and other forms of environmental damage'. Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner is fronting the Government's plans for 1.5 million new homes by 2029 (Jordan Pettitt/PA) Mr Hinchliff has told the PA news agency he does not 'want to rebel' but said he would be prepared to trigger a vote over his proposals. He added his ambition was for 'a progressive alternative to our planning system and the developer-led profit-motivated model that we have at the moment'. The North East Hertfordshire MP said: 'Frankly, to deliver the genuinely affordable housing that we need for communities like those I represent, we just have to smash that model. 'So, what I'm setting out is a set of proposals that would focus on delivering the genuinely affordable homes that we need, empowering local communities and councils to have a driving say over what happens in the local area, and also securing genuine protection for the environment going forwards.' Mr Hinchliff warned that the current system results in 'speculative' applications on land which falls outside of councils' local housebuilding strategies, 'putting significant pressure on inadequate local infrastructure'. In his constituency, which lies between London and Cambridge, 'the properties that are being built are not there to meet local need', Mr Hinchliff said, but were instead 'there to be sold for the maximum profit the developer can make'. Asked whether his proposals chimed with the first of Labour's five 'missions' at last year's general election – 'growth' – he replied: 'If we want to have the key workers that our communities need – the nurses, the social care workers, the bus drivers, the posties – they need to have genuinely affordable homes. 'You can't have that thriving economy without the workforce there, but at the moment, the housing that we are delivering is not likely to be affordable for those sorts of roles. 'It's effectively turning the towns into commuter dormitories rather than having thriving local economies, so for me, yes, it is about supporting the local economy.' Mr Hinchliff warned that the 'bottleneck' which slows housebuilding 'is not process, it's profit'. The developer-led housing model is broken. It has failed to deliver affordable homes. Torching environmental safeguards won't fix it—the bottleneck isn't just process, it's profit. We need a progressive alternative: mass council house building in sustainable communities. — Chris Hinchliff MP (@CHinchliffMP) June 6, 2025 Ms Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary, is fronting the Government's plans for 1.5 million new homes by 2029. Among the proposed reforms is a power for ministers to decide which schemes should come before councillors, and which should be delegated to local authority staff, so that committees can 'focus their resources on complex or contentious development where local democratic oversight is required'. Natural England will also be able to draft 'environmental delivery plans (EDPs)' and acquire land compulsorily to bolster conservation efforts. Mr Hinchliff has suggested these EDPs must come with a timeline for their implementation, and that developers should improve the conservation status of any environmental features before causing 'damage' – a proposal which has support from at least 43 cross-party MP backers. MPs will spend two days debating the Bill on Monday and Tuesday. Chris Curtis, the Labour MP for Milton Keynes North, warned that some of Mr Hinchliff's proposals 'if enacted, would deepen our housing crisis and push more families into poverty'. He said: 'I won't stand by and watch more children in the country end up struggling in temporary accommodation to appease pressure groups. No Labour MP should. 'It's morally reprehensible to play games with this issue. 'These amendments should be withdrawn.'
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Labour missing housebuilding target by 170,000 homes a year, report finds
Labour is on track to miss its housebuilding target after planning permission for new homes tumbled to a record low. A bleak report by the Home Builders Federation yesterday dealt a blow to the Government's vow to build 1.5million properties by 2029. Stark figures show Labour is falling short of its target by 170,000 homes a year. Industry leaders said the data was 'disastrous' and without urgent support from ministers there is 'little chance' of reaching the goal. Just 39,170 homes were given planning permission in England in the first three months of the year – the lowest quarterly figure since records began. That was a 55 per cent drop on the previous quarter and almost 32 per cent lower than a year earlier. The 225,067 units given approval in the 12 months to the end of March was the worst performance in 12 years. The federation said its data 'starkly illustrates the urgent need for Government to address the barriers to housing supply' if they are to get 'anywhere near the much-vaunted' target. A lack of support for first-time buyers, overstretched planning departments and high taxation has squeezed housing development, the trade association said. It also cited a problem with housing associations failing to buy tens of thousands of new homes designated for social and affordable rents. Chief executive Neil Jefferson said: 'The latest planning figures are disastrous for an industry and a government looking to increase housing supply over the coming years. 'Unless urgent interventions are made, there seems little chance of us building the homes we know are desperately needed.' Around 200,000 homes are being built each year, below the 370,000 target, the figures show. The number of new developments approved in the first quarter of 2025 was 2,018 – the worst quarterly figure in 20 years. The HBF called on ministers to introduce support for first-time buyers which could lead to the construction of an extra 100,000 homes. Investment in high-rise blocks has 'collapsed' due to delays at the Building Safety Regulator which 'has been unable to deal with its workload', the group said. There is also a shortfall of 2,000 local council planning officers, and new taxes have 'ballooned' since 2020, putting pressure on builders. A housing department spokesman said it is 'taking decisive action' to speed up the planning process and that its 'seismic reforms will help drive UK housebuilding to its highest level in over 40 years'. Meanwhile, builders could be required to install solar panels on the 'vast majority' of new homes in England, according to Energy Secretary Ed Miliband. It comes a month after No10 confirmed the panels should be installed on as many new properties as possible amid speculation that ministers will make them a mandatory requirement on new builds by 2027.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Government's anti-radicalisation programme says being worried about mass migration is 'terrorist ideology'
The government's anti-radicalisation programme has decided worries about mass migration are 'terrorist ideology'. Among the 'dangerous' beliefs flagged by Prevent's online training course are 'Cultural nationalism' and the idea 'Western culture is under threat'. A statement on the official website describes 'Extreme right-wing' ideology as terrorism, before going on to list three sub-categories. It says concerns around 'lack of integration by certain ethnic and cultural groups' are also a threat. Critics have warned the definition of 'cultural nationalism' is too broad and could even encompass the likes of Sir Keir Starmer. Lord Young, the general secretary of the Free Speech Union (FSU) said: 'The definition in the training course expands the scope of suspicion to include individuals whose views are entirely lawful but politically controversial. 'Now that 'cultural nationalism' has been classified as a subcategory of extreme Right-wing terrorist ideology, even mainstream, Right-of-centre beliefs risk being treated as ideologically suspect, despite falling well within the bounds of lawful expression.' Lord Young added the definition could also capture Mr Jenrick, the former immigration minister, who warned 'excessive, uncontrolled migration threatens to cannibalise the compassion of the British public'. There are three categories of 'Extreme right-wing' terrorism. They are 'Cultural nationalism', 'white/ethno-nationalism' and 'white supremacism' Prevent is one part of the government's overall counter-terrorism strategy and is described as a multi-agency programme that 'aims to stop individuals becoming terrorists'. A Home Office spokesman said: 'Prevent is not about restricting debate or free speech, but about protecting those susceptible to radicalisation.' Each year, thousands of teachers, police officers, health workers and other staff undergo Prevent training. The programmes official 'refresher awareness' course states 'cultural nationalism' as one of the most common 'sub-categories of extreme Right-wing terrorist ideologies', alongside white supremacism and white/ethno-nationalism'. The row comes despite a report by Sir William Shawcross, a former independent reviewer of Prevent, warning that mainstream literature and even Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg had been described as 'cultural nationalists'. Sir William recommended Prevent must be 'consistent in the threshold that it applies across ideologies to ensure a proportionate and effective response'. Among the programme's other failures were its inability to identify people who went on to carry out terrorist attacks, according to Sir William. A former government adviser has now also described the 'cultural nationalism' definition as 'pretty shoddy'. It comes amid fears that despite a person being deemed to require 'no further action', their name could be smeared, with it remaining on police or other databases. Last month, retired police officer Julian Foulkes was arrested and detained for a social media post - with officials who searched his house describing his book collection as 'very Brexity'. Mr Foulkes subsequently received an apology and £20,000 compensation. The FSU has said it has already worked to support members of Prevent like a 24-year-old autistic man whose social worker reporter he had been viewing 'offensive and anti-trans' websites and 'focussing on lots of Right-wing dark comedy'.
