No 10 in talks with Labour MPs in attempt to quash growing welfare revolt

The Guardian

4 hours ago

Downing Street is in talks with a growing band of Labour rebels in an attempt to quash a major revolt over the government's planned welfare changes.
The trade minister Douglas Alexander said on Thursday that the government was 'listening and talking and reflecting' on the rebels' criticisms of the welfare proposals, with more than 120 MPs poised to rebel against the government in next Tuesday's vote.
The Guardian reported overnight that No 10 was preparing to offer concessions to Labour MPs that could include changes to the points needed to be eligible for personal independence payments (Pip), a benefit paid to those both in and out of work.
Alexander said Labour MPs were in agreement 'with the principles of the bill' but were speaking with ministers about how changes would be put in place and how best to protect the most vulnerable. Disgruntled Labour MPs have told ministers they believe people were properly consulted and further scrutiny of the change is needed.
'When 120 Labour colleagues in the House of Commons are making clear through a reasoned amendment that they agree with the principles of the bill, but they've got real concerns in terms of how those principles are given expression in practical application, the government should be listening and talking and reflecting, and that's exactly what I anticipate Labour ministers will be doing,' he told ITV's Good Morning Britain.
The minister said there was still enough time for discussions with potential rebels before Tuesday, telling Sky News: 'We've got time. There'll be discussions that will be happening. There's discussions that have started happening, and I expect that those conversations will continue.'
He added: 'If there are practical ways that we can improve this legislation, we should. We should do it not to buy off rebels, but because it's a Labour thing to do and that's the conversation that I expect ministers will be engaged in in the coming days.'
Pip was introduced by the coalition government in 2013 and is designed to help working-age people 16 and over with the extra costs of living with a health condition or a disability. It is available in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The prime minister's chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, has been having one-on-one talks with senior rebels in recent days, but Labour whips admitted privately they were having no success convincing MPs to withdraw their names from an amendment that would in effect kill the welfare bill.
Attempts to persuade dissenting MPs to remove their names from the amendment – tabled by the Treasury select committee chair, Dame Meg Hillier – have so far proved futile. New signatories overnight included the Commons environmental audit select committee chair, Toby Perkins, the Stoke-on-Trent Central MP, Gareth Snell, the Newcastle upon Tyne MP Mary Glindon and the Tamworth MP Sarah Edwards.
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The North Ayrshire and Arran MP, Irene Campbell, and the Colchester MP, Pam Cox, have also added their names, bringing the total number of Labour backbenchers supporting the amendment to 126.
The prime minister appeared to bat away the threat of a major rebellion on Wednesday, when responding to a question about whether he had the political skill to lead Britain, while taking questions at the Nato summit in The Hague.
'Is it tough going? Are there plenty of noises off? There always are, there always have been, there always will be,' Starmer said. 'I'm comfortable with reading the room and delivering the change the country needs.' He insisted his party remained 'pretty united' behind the need for change.
The government had argued its changes were necessary 'to confront the broken welfare system … which is no longer a safety net for those that need support', noting that one in 10 working-age people in Britain now claimed at least one type of health or disability benefit, while the number of people claiming health related benefits with no requirement to work had increased by 45% since 2019-20.
Analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) thinktank predicted that 800,000 fewer working-age people would receive a Pip daily living award in 2029-30 if the changes went ahead. Even if fully implemented, official forecasts have still suggested the number of working-age claimants of Pip or its predecessor in England and Wales would rise from 3.1 million in 2024-25 to 3.9 million in 2029-30.