A significant update to family welfare support is poised to be announced this Wednesday. Labour Party Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to abolish the two-child benefit cap in her Budget on November 26.
This cap currently restricts Universal Credit and child tax credit payments to cover only the first two children in a family, affecting any third or subsequent children born after April 6, 2017.
Conservative MP Sir Mel Stride confirmed that the Chancellor would eliminate this cap, emphasizing the importance of families making financial decisions similar to taxpayers. He stated, “You should be taking the same tough choices that taxpayers take when it comes to whether you can afford to have a larger family or not.”
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At present, families cannot claim an additional £292.81 a month in Universal Credit for their third or later children due to this cap.
Stride further commented, “The best way of getting people and families out of poverty is through work and employment, and where we are on that is very clear. We don’t believe that it’s right to have a culture in our country where too many people are on benefits.”
On the other hand, Caroline, a 42-year-old mother of four-year-old Henry, expressed frustration: “It makes you wonder why people bother working. Nowadays there is a culture in Britain where some have come to expect handouts. The two-child cap should stay in place. Nobody wants kids in poverty but Rachel Reeves is encouraging people who can’t afford children to have them.”
Child poverty campaigner Alison Garnham, chief executive of the Child Poverty Action Group, insists that removing the cap is “the right thing to do.” She explains that this change would immediately lift 350,000 children out of poverty and reduce hardship for another 700,000. Garnham adds, “Removing this invidious policy would mean millions more children get the fair start in life they deserve.”
One parent told The Guardian that repealing the policy would allow their children to have access to more essential resources and opportunities—a change that many families eagerly await.