LABOUR MPs have been urged to “do the right thing” by Stephen Flynn and support a Commons amendment to scrap the two-child benefit cap.
The SNP Westminster leader urged Government backbenchers to rebel after Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle selected a King’s Speech amendment pressing for the policy to be abolished “immediately”.
The SNP proposal, to be considered on Tuesday, is backed by Plaid Cymru, the Green Party and other MPs, including former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn – who is now an independent.
The cap was introduced in 2015 by then-Conservative chancellor George Osborne and restricts child welfare payments to the first two children born to most families.
Speaking during the debate on Monday, Labour’s Kim Johnson (Liverpool Riverside) said the “punitive policy needs to be consigned to the dustbin of history where it belongs”, while Tory former cabinet minister Suella Braverman (below) also warned the policy was “putting more children and families into relative poverty”.
The Government has said work is under way on its plans to tackle child poverty, although it has stopped short of committing to ending the two-child benefit cap.
Flynn said in a statement: “We now know the SNP amendment will go to a vote tonight – and MPs across the chamber will have the opportunity to scrap the two-child cap and lift thousands of children out of poverty.
“Scrapping the cap is the bare minimum required to tackle the appalling levels of child poverty in the UK. It is unconscionable that the Labour Government is making a political choice to push thousands of Scottish children into poverty by keeping it in place.
“For every day that Keir Starmer fails to act, more children will suffer. This punitive Westminster policy has to go – and it must go now. I urge Labour MPs to do the only right thing, and vote with their conscience, to end the two-child cap immediately.”
The Speaker also selected amendment L from the Conservative Party, which included raising concerns on defence spending commitments.
Liberal Democrat amendment K, which calls for action on healthcare and sewage dumping, was also selected.
Party leader Ed Davey said in a statement: “I am proud the Liberal Democrats have tabled this amendment to the King’s Speech to stand up for care and carers.
“We will be the voice of carers in this Parliament and work with others to find solutions to the big challenge of social care.
“Millions of people voted for the Liberal Democrats because they wanted us to deliver change and a fair deal. Now, from our plan to tackle the sewage scandal to more support to fix our NHS and care, Liberal Democrat MPs are making the case for just that in Parliament today.”
