Controversial two-child benefit cap ‘plunges extra 30,000 children into poverty since Labour came to power'
An extra 30,000 children have been pulled into poverty by the controversial 'two-child limit' on benefits since Labour came to power, according to new research ahead of the eight anniversary of the policy.
Last July ministers said they would consider ditching the 'cruel' cap, in a bid to head off a backbench Labour revolt on the issue.
separate moves to slash an extra £5 billion from the welfare bill are set to drive another 50,000 kids into poverty.
The cap now affects more than 1.6 million children, by limiting welfare payments to the first two children in most families.
New costings from Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) show another 109 more children are pulled into poverty by the policy every day.
And the number of children affected will continue to increase until 2035 - when the first children born under the turn 18.
The charity says that scrapping the cap would be the most cost-effective way to lift kids out of poverty.
Were the policy to be dumped, 350,000 children would be lifted from poverty at a stroke, it adds. The depth of the poverty experienced by another 800,000 children would be reduced.
Chief executive of the CPAG Alison Garnham said: 'Every day the policy forces families to go hungry and damages the life chances of children up and down the country. Reducing the record high levels of child poverty in the UK will require a whole government effort, but abolishing the two-child limit is the essential first step.'
Any effort to tackle child poverty will "fall flat on its face" if the two-child limit is not abandoned, she added.
She said that while it would cost around £2 billion, it would be cheaper than other options.
Another possibility, increasing the child element of Universal Credit by £17 a week would cost £3 billion.
CPAG warns that child poverty is at a record high affecting 4.5 million children, up from 3.6 million in 2010/11. The charity also estimates that unless the government takes substantive action, 4.8m children will be in poverty by 2030.
Charities, unions and even former home secretary Suella Braverman have all urged Keir Starmer to dump the cap, brought in as one of former Conservative chancellor George Osborne's austerity measures.
The government is due to publish its new child poverty plan this spring, although the End Child Poverty Coalition has said it believes the document might not come until June.
A government spokesman said: 'No one should be living in poverty, and we know that the best route out of poverty for struggling families is well paid, secure work.
'That is why we are reforming our broken welfare system, so it helps people into good jobs, boosting living standards and putting money in people's pockets.
'Alongside this, our Child Poverty Taskforce is building an ambitious strategy to give all children the best start in life while we increase the Living Wage, uprate benefits, and support 700,000 of the poorest families by introducing a Fair Repayment Rate on Universal Credit deductions to help low-income households.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Record
35 minutes ago
- Daily Record
Lanarkshire MSP calls on Holyrood to make sure OAPs aren't left behind on winter fuel payments
More than 75 per cent of pensioners in England and Wales will be entitled to the new annual payment of up to £300 after the Labour government abandoned one of its first, and most controversial, policies. A Lanarkshire MSP has called on the Scottish Government to ensure local pensioners aren't left behind following the UK Government's u-turn on winter fuel payments. More than 75 per cent of pensioners in England and Wales will be entitled to the new annual payment of up to £300 after the Labour government abandoned one of its first, and most controversial, policies. Scotland has already created a devolved benefit of £100 for all pensioner households, potentially leaving hundreds of thousands of Scots worse off than their counterparts south of the border. Central Scotland list Labour MSP Monica Lennon said 'This is welcome news that will bring even more money to people in Lanarkshire – on top of the record funding settlement Labour delivered for Scotland in the budget. 'While the last Tory government left our public finances in chaos, Labour has made good progress cleaning up the mess it inherited. 'The Winer Fuel Payment is a devolved payment in Scotland and Scottish Labour has been clear that we want to see it reinstated for the majority of pensioners here – but despite their loud spin, the SNP voted against our attempts to do so. 'That's why we are urging the SNP not go ahead with plans that would unfairly hit poorer pensioners. 'The SNP must re-examine their own proposals in light of this game-changing announcement, ensure payments reach those most in need, and give a cast-iron guarantee that no struggling Scottish pensioners will be left out of pocket under their plans.' Last July, Chancellor Reeves drew widespread criticism over cuts to the winter fuel payment - a lump sum of £200 a year for households with a pensioner under 80, or £300 for households with a pensioner over 80 - in a bid to save an estimated £1.4 billion. In response, the Scottish Government introduced a new scheme offering those in receipt of qualifying benefits like Pension Credit £200 or £300 depending on their age, and £100 for all other pensioner households. However, while the benefit for pensioners above the income threshold will be clawed back through tax, richer pensioners in Scotland will be able to keep the payment. Following the latest announcement from Westminster, Scottish pensioners who do not get pension credit but whose income is below that £35,000 threshold are expected to receive £100 less than if they lived in England or Wales. Shirley-Anne Somerville said Scotland introduced a winter heating payment for all pensioners because of the UK government's 'betrayal of millions of pensioners'. She said the Scottish Government welcomed the U-turn, but 'there is still no detail about how the Chancellor intends to go about that'. The social justice secretary said: 'We have once again not been consulted on the policy and its implications in Scotland and will scrutinise the proposals carefully when they are announced. 'I would therefore urge the UK Government to ensure the Scottish government is fully appraised of the proposed changes as soon as possible.'
Rhyl Journal
41 minutes ago
- Rhyl Journal
UK Government ‘betraying Wales' over rail funding, Plaid leader says
Rhun ap Iorwerth, leader of Plaid, criticised the UK Labour Government for reclassifying the £6.6 billion Oxford to Cambridge line to an England and Wales project. The designation means Wales will not receive the additional rail funding it would get if branded an England-only project. Mr ap Iorwerth called on Eluned Morgan, the Welsh Labour First Minister, to condemn the reclassification. Baroness Morgan agreed Wales was not getting its fair share but said she was expecting to see positive changes in the UK Government's spending review on Wednesday. Mr ap Iorwerth's comments come following reports that revealed the project had originally been listed as England-only from 2020 to 2024. The Treasury told the BBC the classification was a 'publishing error' and insisted it was always considered an England and Wales development. Speaking First Minister's Questions in the Senedd on Tuesday, Mr ap Iorwerth said: 'We were getting our share until Labour actively moved the goalposts. 'Labour went out of its way to make sure Wales wouldn't get the money when the big spending really began.' He added: 'She should be joining me in condemning the UK Labour Government for betraying Wales. Will she?' Mr ap Iorwerth argued the reclassification was a 'new HS2 scandal' – a rail project that has been controversial in Wales. Despite none of the track being laid in the country, it was also designated an England and Wales project by the last UK Conservative government. Plaid has said this designation cost Wales £3.9 billion in funding. Responding to Mr Iorwerth, Baroness Morgan said: 'I've learned to expect nothing but constant negativity from the Plaid Cymru leader. 'I've been clear and I've been consistent when it comes to rail funding that we have not been getting our fair share of funding, in a position that the Tories left us with for over a decade. 'The difference between the Tories and the UK Labour Government is that they've recognised that injustice. 'I don't know what's going to be in the spending review, but the one thing I do know is that if Labour gave Wales a total land of milk and honey, Plaid Cymru would still find fault.' Baroness Morgan added they were 'expecting something positive from the spending review', but the Welsh government would have to keep on making the case for a fair share of funding. In January, the UK government admitted Welsh railways had been underfunded, with spending at 'low levels' in recent years. However, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander did not announce any additional funding at the time.
Glasgow Times
42 minutes ago
- Glasgow Times
Scrapping of Vagrancy Act next year landmark moment, say homelessness charities
The Vagrancy Act, introduced in 1824 for punishment of 'idle and disorderly persons, and rogues and vagabonds, in England', is to be repealed by spring next year, the Government has confirmed. Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, who is also Housing Secretary, said Labour is 'drawing a line under nearly two centuries of injustice towards some of the most vulnerable in society'. The law was brought in to deal with rising homelessness after the Napoleonic Wars and the Industrial Revolution and modern-day homeless charities have long called for it to be scrapped. Campaigners said criminalising the most vulnerable has never been the answer and instead homelessness needs to be properly addressed through support for people who end up sleeping rough. Figures published in April showed the number of people classed as living on the streets in London had risen by more than a third (38%) year-on-year to 706 from 511. According to the latest Combined Homelessness and Information Network (Chain) statistics, the total number recorded as sleeping rough in the capital was 4,427 for the three months to March 2025, which was a near-8% increase from 4,118 for the same quarter last year. Ms Rayner said: 'No one should ever be criminalised simply for sleeping rough and by scrapping this cruel and outdated law, we are making sure that can never happen again.' Homelessness minister Rushanara Ali described the 'archaic' Act as 'neither just nor fit for purpose'. She added: 'Scrapping the Vagrancy Act for good is another step forward in our mission to tackle homelessness in all its forms, by focusing our efforts on its root causes.' The Government said new 'targeted measures will ensure police have the powers they need to keep communities safe – filling the gap left over by removing previous powers', and will be brought in through amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill. These will be new offences of facilitating begging for gain and trespassing with the intention of committing a crime. The Government said this will ensure organised begging – often facilitated by criminal gangs – remains an offence, meaning it is unlawful for anyone to organise others to beg by, for example, driving them places to do so. Crisis chief executive Matt Downie said: 'This is a landmark moment that will change lives and prevent thousands of people from being pushed into the shadows, away from safety.' He praised the Government for having 'shown such principled leadership in scrapping this pernicious Act'. He said: 'We hope this signals a completely different approach to helping people forced onto the streets and clears the way for a positive agenda that is about supporting people who desperately want to move on in life and fulfil their potential. We look forward to assisting the UK Government with their forthcoming homelessness strategy to do exactly that.' St Mungo's chief executive Emma Haddad said the Act's repeal 'cannot come soon enough' and called for a 'focus on tackling the health, housing and wider societal issues that are causing homelessness in the first place'. Youth homelessness charity Centrepoint warned that a challenge will be 'ensuring that proposed amendments don't have the unintended consequences of punishing people instead of supporting them'. Balbir Kaur Chatrik, the charity's director of policy and prevention, said: 'Criminalising the most vulnerable was never an effective solution and we look forward to working with the Government on its ending homelessness strategy to ensure people in this position are supported, not punished going forward.'
