Phillipson sparks row over two-child benefit cap
The Education Secretary faced a backlash after declaring that the Government's benefits climbdown last week would make it harder to abolish the two-child limit.
But Labour MPs who led the welfare revolt and Jeremy Corbyn, Sir Keir Starmer's predecessor, issued fresh calls on Sunday to abolish the 'cruel and immoral' policy.
The backbench rebellion on welfare forced Sir Keir to tear up his plans to reform disability benefits, wiping out an estimated £5 billion in savings.
Ms Phillipson insisted there was now less scope to abandon the two-child cap, which restricts child tax credit and Universal Credit to two children in most households.
She told Sky's Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips: 'It does come at a cost, and that's why, in keeping with our fiscal rules, we do need to make sure that we have a strong foundation for the economy.
'We make sure we get this right. These ultimately will be matters that the Chancellor has to consider right across the board.'
Pressed on whether the chances of the cap being lifted were lower because there was now less money, Ms Phillipson said: 'The decisions that have been taken this last week do make future decisions harder.
'But all of that said, we will look at this collectively in terms of all of the ways that we can lift children out of poverty.'
Sir Keir endured the biggest rebellion of his premiership to date last Tuesday as 49 Labour MPs voted against his welfare Bill despite a string of major last-minute concessions.
Out of those rebels, more than one third have also signalled their opposition to the two-child benefit cap since Labour took power.
Mr Corbyn currently sits as an independent MP but last week announced his involvement in a new hard-Left party alongside Zarah Sultana, a fellow independent, which fight Labour nationally.
Responding to Ms Phillipson's remarks, Mr Corbyn told The Telegraph: 'The two child benefit cap is cruel and immoral. The government should have scrapped this cap the minute it was elected.
'For it to double-down now one year later, all because it couldn't take enough support away from disabled people, is disgraceful.
'Keeping children in poverty is not a tough choice – it's the wrong choice.'
The two Labour backbench MPs who masterminded the welfare rebellion also called on the Prime Minister to change course and scrap the cap.
Rachael Maskell, who tabled an amendment backed by dozens of Labour MPs that sought to kill the Bill altogether, said it was 'crucial' that no child was denied opportunity.
'It's got to be an absolute focus of this government to lift as many children out of poverty as possible,' Ms Maskell said.
'Slowing the pace of that ambition is not acceptable and therefore starting by ending the two-child limit, as well as the benefit cap, is really important.
'It's absolutely crucial that the government does not waver on this issue, that it finds the expectation of what a Labour Government should do and finds the resource to be able to deliver that.'
Neil Duncan-Jordan, whose open letter denouncing the cuts was signed by 42 Labour MPs back in May, told Sir Keir to make child poverty a key priority during his second year in power.
He told The Telegraph: 'Whilst not the only lever to pull, lifting the two-child benefit cap is widely acknowledged as the quickest way to lift the largest number of children out of poverty.
'It doesn't fix the problem, but it is an essential part of what needs to happen if we are serious about tackling child poverty.'
Clive Lewis, the Labour MP for Norwich South, added that 'of course' the limit should be scrapped.
He said: 'If this Labour Government is to rebuild the country, it must start with the scourge of poverty – in all its forms. There can be no credible definition of success that does not include its eradication as a central goal.'
Jon Trickett, another prominent Left-wing Labour MP, added: 'It is wrong to keep children in poverty because we are protecting disability benefits. Dividing the poor against each other whilst protecting wealth is entirely wrong.'
John McDonnell, who was Mr Corbyn's shadow chancellor and has also been stripped of the Labour whip, condemned briefings over the weekend which suggested that plans to scrap the cap were 'dead in the water'.
'The idea that scrapping the two-child limit is to be some sort of punishment beating of the PLP for voting against disability benefit cuts is disgusting,' he wrote on X.
The Child Poverty Action Group has said the number of children in poverty will jump from 4.5 million currently to 4.8 million by 2029 unless Sir Keir takes action.
While the two-child limit applies across the UK, the Scottish government confirmed it will provide funding to essentially scrap the policy north of the border from March 2026.
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