Six Labour MPs who were suspended due to their stance against the two-child benefit limit are urging Rachel Reeves to completely eliminate the “cruel” policy. They emphasize that the Labour government cannot justify keeping the policy and should demonstrate a commitment to addressing the cost-of-living crisis affecting numerous families.
The MPs, including John McDonnell, Rebecca Long-Bailey, Ian Byrne, Apsana Begum, Richard Burgon, and Imran Hussain, have written a letter to Rachel Reeves. They argue that the two-child benefit limit unfairly penalizes children for circumstances beyond their control and urge for its immediate abolition to alleviate child poverty significantly.
The pressure on Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves to reconsider the policy implemented by George Osborne nearly a decade ago is mounting. Charities have criticized the restriction of Child Tax Credits and Universal Credit to the first two children in a family, attributing it to trapping children in poverty.
As the government prepares to release its child poverty review alongside the Budget, there are concerns that partial measures such as a three-child limit or reduced benefits for additional children could still result in elevated child poverty rates. Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, has also joined the call for scrapping the policy and criticized the decision to penalize MPs who opposed it last summer.