Ministers tasked with tackling child poverty have already faced calls to scrap the two-child limit before their new taskforce has even met for the first time.
The government has launched a taskforce on child poverty following criticism that the removal of the two-child benefit cap was not included in the King’s Speech.
However, this measure may not be enough to prevent Labour MPs from rebelling if an amendment on the issue is selected, with a senior backbencher John McDonnell told Sky News the body was “a step forward, but not enough”.
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The two-child cap, introduced by the Conservatives in 2017, prevents parents from claiming Universal Credit or Child Tax Credits for a third child except in very limited circumstances.
Critics say it contributes to increasing levels of child poverty, large families being able to claim around £3,200 per year per additional child.
Sir Keir Starmer resisted pressure from some of his MPs to scrap the cap in his King’s Speech, which prioritised economic growth through measures such as housing construction and the nationalization of the railways.
But in an attempt to address their concerns, he has launched a child poverty task force to begin work on an “ambitious” strategy to tackle the root causes of the problem.
Labour Government’s First King’s Speech
There is no mention of benefits in the ad.
The taskforce will be led by the Work and Pensions Secretary and the Education Secretary, who will explore how levers related to household income, employment, housing, health, childcare and education can “improve children’s experiences and life chances”, the government said.
Mr McDonnell cautiously welcomed the task force but said it would not stop him from potentially voting for an amendment to end the “brutal” two-child policy.
He told Sky News: “There’s a good chance that this will resolve the issue of the two-child limit. So the question now is when will the taskforce meet and report back on the two-child limit?”
“It will be seen as a step forward, but not far enough or fast enough on the specific issue of the two-child limit.”
The former shadow chancellor said it was “more than likely” he would back an SNP motion calling for the limit to be scrapped, depending on how it was worded.
“I said I would vote at every opportunity to repeal this brutal law,” he added.
Mr McDonnell is among a number of Labour MPs who have openly called on Sir Keir to reconsider his position on the two-child limit.
His colleague Ian Byrne said the taskforce was “positive” but added: “With 43% of children living in poverty, we know from all the child poverty agencies that removing the two-child limit will have an immediate impact and, together with the right to food, will have a huge impact on tackling the poverty and hunger that we see across the UK.”
Kim Johnson, Labour MP for Riverside in Liverpool, said she would table an amendment to the King’s Speech calling for the cap to be scrapped, which her left-wing colleague Zarah Sultana said she would support.
The SNP also said it wants to submit an amendment on the issue, while the Lib Dems, Greens, Reform UK and independents such as the former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn I also oppose the ceiling.
Mr Corbyn asked how much money was being spent on the taskforce, saying “that money could have been spent just on abolishing the cap”.
“If the government thinks that these pathetic political manoeuvres will get it some silence, it is deeply mistaken,” he said.
Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle has the power to select amendments, and that decision will be made next week when MPs debate the contents of the King’s Speech.
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Sir Keir’s large majority means he could easily fend off a major rebellion by his own MPs, as well as votes from opposition parties.
But a row on his backbenches just weeks after forming the government would nonetheless be embarrassing for the new prime minister.
Speaking in the House of Commons, SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn asked how many children would remain in poverty while the taskforce did its work, before it “ends up coming to the same conclusion that we are proposing, which is to remove the two-child benefit cap”.
In response, the Prime Minister said he was aware that the benefit cap was an issue “across the House” and that the aim of the taskforce “is to develop a strategy, as we did last time in government, to get those numbers up”. [of children in poverty] down”.
He has already said he would remove the two-child limit “in an ideal world”, but there is not enough money to do so.
Removing the child benefit cap for two children would cost between £2.5bn and £3.6bn in 2024/25, according to the Resolution Foundation, which said these figures were “small compared to the damage caused by the policy”.
The Child Poverty Action Group said the cap “increases child poverty more than any other policy” and that its removal should now take place in the first budget.
