Keir Starmer in full retreat as he waters down welfare cuts AGAIN in order to avoid his biggest ever rebellion as Labour MPs rail at 'Dickensian' benefits curbs

Daily Mail​

3 days ago

Keir Starmer made yet another major concession to his already threadbare plan to cut disability benefits tonight in an attempt to water down a major Labour rebellion - just 90 minutes before the vote.
The Prime Minister has already humiliatingly weakened the package of welfare reforms by agreeing to only apply them to new claimants, as dozens of his MPs vowed to defy him this evening.
Although the scale of the rebellion is now far smaller than the 120-plus who originally signed a fatal amendment, it is still on track to be the biggest of Sir Keir's premiership so far.
In a sign of the panic gripping No10, Social Security Minister Sir Stephen Timms confirmed in the Commons that the remaining changes, due to be introduced in November, would now not come in before a review was completed in the autumn of 2026.
The volte face ahead of a vote at 7pm caused bemusement in the Commons, with confused MPs questioning if there was anything left for them to vote on.
It came after Labour MPs spoke in their droves against the 'Dickensian' plan to make it harder to claim Personal Independence Payment (Pip) or Universal Credit health elements.
Concessions had already reduced the planned savings from £5billion to £2.5billion by the end of the decade - taking a wrecking ball to Rachel Reeves' hopes of balancing the books without more tax rises.
Cabinet sources told MailOnline they expected the result would be 'tight' - even though no government has lost a piece of legislation at second reading stage since 1986. No10 has refused to rule out further concessions.
In a sign of the panic gripping No10, Social Security Minister Sir Stephen Timms confirmed in the Commons that the remaining changes, due to be introduced in November, would now not come in before a review was completed in the autumn of 2026.
Intervening during the second reading debate, Sir Stephen said MPs had 'raised concerns that the changes to Pip are coming ahead of the conclusions of the review of the assessment that I will be leading'.
'We have heard those concerns, and that is why I can announce that ... we will move straight to the wider review, sometimes referred to as the Timms review, and only make changes to Pip eligibility activities and descriptors following that review.
'The Government is committed to concluding the review by the autumn of next year.'
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch had earlier accused ministers of being 'driven not by principle but by panic', joking that Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall 'looks as if she is being tortured'.
Sir Keir gathered Cabinet to take stock of the grim situation this morning, telling his top team the reforms are 'designed to help those who can work into employment and ensure dignity and security for those who can't work'.
A truce that had been painstakingly thrashed out last week dramatically disintegrated yesterday amid claims that Sir Keir had reneged on the terms.
The Tories have confirmed they will vote against the Bill, despite supporting a welfare spending crackdown.
That opens the door to Sir Keir's massive majority of 166 being overturned - although most believe the government will scrape through.
Some 39 Labour MPs signed a new fatal amendment overnight, with more than 80 needing to switch sides in theory to inflict a defeat.
The Speaker has selected the amendment tabled by Rachael Maskell, meaning that it will go to a vote at 7pm.
Ms Maskell has warned 'many more' MPs have told her they still plan to oppose the Government's plans.
Speaking in the chamber she said: 'These Dickensian cuts belong to a different era and a different party. They are far from what this Labour Party is for: a party to protect the poor, as is my purpose, for I am my brother's keeper.
'These are my constituents, my neighbours, my community, my responsibility, and I cannot cross by on the other side.'
Ms Maskell said she had spoken to a constituent who had felt suicidal discussing the cuts, and told colleagues she felt a duty to protect the disabled.
She said: 'I will fight for the purpose of politics, for their livelihoods and their lives. It is a matter of conscience, deep conscience for me to ensure that these precious people are treated for once with dignity.'
She added: 'So at this 11th hour I plead, withdraw. We will be met with relief and praise. Let's consult, co-produce, incorporate the Mayfield Review findings and accommodate the Timms Review first.'
One rebel ringleader, Debbie Abrahams, said a promised review of the system had not been honoured by the government.
The Work and Pensions Committee chair told the House there was 'clear confusion' on the review and whether it would be 'co-produced with disabled people and their organisations'.
Referring to the proposed requirement for new Pip claimants to score at least four points on at least one daily living activity, Ms Abrahams said: 'And therein lies the problem – most of us are aware that the dog's breakfast of this Bill is being driven by the need to get four points to the OBR (Office for Budget Responsibility) to enable it to be scored for the budget.'
Former frontbencher Rebecca Long-Bailey said the government must 'pull back from the brink'.
'The sad thing is, is that there are alternatives: introduce higher taxes on extreme wealth; end the stealth subsidies for banks; tax gambling fairly and properly. The list of alternatives is endless,' she said.
Ms Kendall said welfare reform 'is never easy, perhaps especially for Labour governments'.
The Work and Pensions Secretary told the Commons: 'Reviewing the assessment as a whole, let me just say, it is a major undertaking that will take time to get right, especially if we co-produce it properly.
'It will be for those involved in the review to determine the precise (timetable), but we are absolutely committed to moving quickly and completing the review by next autumn.
'And I want to assure the House, any changes following the Timms review will be implemented as soon as is practicably possible via primary or secondary legislation.
'And once we have implemented changes from the review, any existing Pip (personal independence payment) claimant can ask for re-assessment.
'Welfare reform, let's be honest, is never easy, perhaps especially for Labour governments. Our social security system directly touches the lives of millions of people and it is something we all care deeply about.
'We have listened to the concerns that have been raised to help us get these changes right. The Bill protects people already claiming Pip, it protects in real terms the incomes of people already receiving the UC (universal credit) health top-up from that benefit and their standard allowance, and it protects those with severe lifelong conditions who will never work, and those near the end of their life as we promised we would.'
DWP estimates that the latest proposals would still push 150,000 extra people into poverty by 2030 angered many, even though it was lower than the 250,000 envisaged in the original plans.
She said she had no fear in voting down the Bill and felt a 'moral duty' to 'speak up for' disabled people.
'Yes, I support getting disabled people into work where they've been discriminated and dismissed, of course that's important, but when those people can't work or need longer to prepare for work, it is vital we don't remove their lifeline,' she said.
'Or else they'll disappear further and further into the margins.'
But Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds told Sky News: 'I'd ask (colleagues) to support the Government on that basis, because clearly what we've got here is something which is better than the existing system.
Asked whether MPs would lose the whip for voting against the Government, he said he was 'not aware of anything like that' but 'those issues are for the chief whip'.
Rachel Reeves defended the government's record on helping people in poverty earlier today.
'The Government is committed to ensuring that there are fewer sick and disabled people in poverty by helping them into work and getting them off NHS waiting lists,' she said.
'That is why at the spring statement, we announced the largest investment in employment support in at least a generation. The Government has already taken action to tackle poverty including with the fair repayment rate, which lowers the cap on deductions in universal credit.
'And we've increased the national living wage by 6.7%.
'Beyond this, we're investing to reduce poverty by expanding free school meals, investing in a £1 billion settlement for crisis support, and we'll be setting out our child poverty strategy in the autumn. We've invested £29 billion in reducing NHS waiting lists, and since taking office, there are 385,000 more people in work.'