Prime Minister Keir Starmer has suggested he is open to scrapping the controversial two-child benefit cap, as pressure mounts from both Labour backbenchers and Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.
Introduced in 2015 under George Osborne during the Conservative austerity drive, the cap prevents parents from claiming certain benefits for more than two children. Now, with criticism growing louder from within his own party, the prime minister has signaled a willingness to review the policy.
Speaking to workers at a glass equipment factory in St Helen’s during a press conference aimed at confronting the growing popularity of Reform, Sir Keir said: “One of the proudest things that the last Labour government did was to drive down child poverty, and that’s why we’ve got a task force working on this.”
“I think there are a number of components. There isn’t a single bullet, but I’m absolutely determined that we will drive this down, and that’s why we’ll look at all options, always, of driving down child poverty.”
Keir Starmer
His comments followed a similar statement by Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson, who told reporters that abolishing the two-child limit was “on the table” as part of Labour’s long-awaited child poverty strategy, now scheduled for release in the autumn. “It’s certainly something that we’re considering,” Phillipson said. “We’ve always been clear that social security measures are an important part of what the child poverty task force is looking at.”
Nigel Farage added fuel to the debate just days earlier by vowing to eliminate the cap entirely if Reform were in power. He linked the move to efforts to tackle the UK’s falling birthrate, stating it would be part of a broader strategy to “make having children easier.”
The prime minister is said to privately support ending the cap, which many believe could be the most effective way to reduce child poverty. Critics warn that nearly 100 children are pushed into poverty each day under the current limit.
Starmer Under Pressure To Act
One senior Labour MP, speaking after Starmer’s remarks, said the prime minister “is going to have to” act due to mounting frustration among MPs on the backbenches. While no firm decision has yet been announced, political insiders suggest change may only come once the child poverty strategy is officially released.
In the meantime, the delay has drawn criticism, as has Labour’s overall welfare agenda. Polling carried out last week by Merlin Strategy found that almost half of voters in traditionally Labour-held red wall seats disapprove of the government’s handling of benefits. Of the 42 constituencies surveyed, 48% expressed dissatisfaction, while just 25% said they approved.
Among 2024 Labour voters, views were evenly split — 38% approved of the government’s benefits policies, and 38% disapproved, signaling a potential threat to the party’s fragile support base.
Alongside the child benefit debate, Starmer’s administration is also facing resistance over other welfare decisions. The government’s recent plan to means-test the winter fuel payment triggered backlash, prompting Starmer to tell the Commons he would now look at “increasing the thresholds at which people start to receive the benefit.”
Adding to the pressure, Labour is grappling with a brewing rebellion over planned welfare cuts. The proposed changes would see personal independence payments (PIP) reduced for as many as 800,000 people with disabilities — a move that has further rattled both MPs and campaigners.
The policy decisions and internal debates highlight the balancing act Starmer must maintain between staying fiscally responsible and addressing rising public concern over child poverty and support for vulnerable citizens.
As the autumn deadline for Labour’s child poverty strategy approaches, calls for a decisive shift in welfare policy are expected to intensify. Whether the two-child cap survives remains uncertain, but all eyes will be on how Starmer navigates the growing dissent within his ranks and the populist challenge posed by Reform UK.
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