Starmer faces major Labour rebellion over benefits cuts

Telegraph

5 days ago

Sir Keir Starmer is facing the biggest Labour rebellion of his premiership to date after more than 100 of his own MPs backed a bid to sink his £5 billion welfare cuts.
Dozens of Labour MPs have signed an amendment to the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill, which is due to be debated in the House of Commons for the first time on July 1.
The amendment sets out a long list of reasons why the Bill should be rejected, including a lack of consultation with disabled people and the Government's own assessment that the changes could push an extra 250,000 people into poverty.
If the amendment is selected for debate and if all of the Labour MPs who have signed it were to vote in favour of it, along with opposition parties, it would be enough to kill the Bill.
It represents a major challenge to Sir Keir's authority and will send Downing Street scrambling to defuse the situation and keep the Bill alive.
The Government's welfare reforms would see more of an emphasis placed on getting people on benefits back into work, with the stated aim of saving £5 billion a year by 2030.
Under the proposals in the Bill, ministers will limit eligibility for the personal independence payment which is the main disability payment in England and also limit the sickness-related element of Universal Credit.
But there has been rumbling and growing opposition to the changes from Labour MPs concerned at the impact they could have on some of the most vulnerable people in society.
Ministers have already attempted to soften the impact of the changes but dozens of Labour MPs are still opposed to the Bill.
The amendment has been tabled by Dame Meg Hillier, the chairman of the powerful Liaison Committee, and has been signed by numerous senior backbench figures.
Another nine Labour select committee chairs have also backed the amendment, including Debbie Abrahams from the Work and Pensions Select Committee and Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi, from the Defence Select Committee.
Other notable Labour figures who have signed the amendment include Diane Abbott, the Mother of the House of Commons, and former leadership contender Rebecca Long-Bailey.
Vicky Foxcroft, the former whip who resigned from the Government last week over the welfare plans, has also signed the amendment.
'Consult disabled people'
The amendment notes the 'need for the reform of the social security system' and agrees with the Government's 'principles for providing support to people into work and protecting people who cannot work'.
But it states the Bill should be rejected 'because its provisions have not been subject to a formal consultation with disabled people, or co-produced with them, or their carers'.
It also states that the Government's own impact assessment 'estimates that 250,000 people will be pushed into poverty as a result of these provisions, including 50,000 children'.
A total of 108 MPs have signed the amendment. Ms Abrahams said the MPs 'want the Government to listen and to think again on this Bill'.
She added: 'We are being asked to vote for this Bill before disabled people have been consulted, before impact assessments have been conducted and before we have given enough time to some of the Government's key policies – investing in the NHS, to the right to try, and to work coaching – (to) have been able to bed in.'
Liz Kendall, the Work and Pensions Secretary, told a meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party on Monday evening that the proposed changes were 'rooted in fairness'.
She argued the reforms were about ensuring the survival of the welfare state so there is always a safety net for those who need it.
Ms Kendall added: 'Above all, they are about our belief that everyone can fulfil their potential and live their hopes and dreams when, collectively, we provide them with real opportunities and support. This is the better future we seek to build for our constituents and our country.'