Government issues two-child benefit cap update amid calls for major change | Chronicle Live

Government issues two-child benefit cap update amid calls for major changeThe Education Secretary has confirmed that plans to scrap the cap are 'not off the table' amid calls to take action

to tackle child poverty ratesCommentsCatherine Addison-Swan11:48, 27 May 2025The cap means low-income families receive no additional support for their third or subsequent children(Image:

Getty Images) The Government has issued an update on potential plans to scrap the two-child benefit cap as it faces mounting pressure to axe the limit. Currently, any low-income families in

receipt of Universal Credit only get additional financial support for the first two children they have.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson confirmed that scrapping the cap is "not off the table", adding that it is the "moral mission" of the Labour Government to tackle child poverty. It

comes amid increasing calls from campaigners and other political parties to axe the limit first introduced under the Conservatives in 2017, which would come at a cost of around £3.5 billion.

‌ Under current rules, parents do not receive any additional support for third or subsequent children born after April 5, 2017. The Government's child poverty strategy, which was due to be

published in the spring and was expected to include a recommendation to scrap the cap, is now set to come out in the autumn so it can be aligned with the Chancellor's budget.

‌ Asked if she would "scrap" the two-child benefit cap, Ms Phillipson told BBC Breakfast: "We're certainly looking at it as part of the task force. As I say, nothing's off the table but this

is not straightforward, the costs are high.

"When we came into Government we had to make some difficult decisions about how we got the economy back on a stable footing, because actually it's working people who lose out when you have

that kind of instability that we saw under Liz Truss, when mortgage rates went up, rent went up as a result of all of the instability and the chaos."

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Article continues below She continued: "But I came into politics to tackle child poverty, to make sure that wherever you're from doesn't determine what you can go on to achieve in life, to

break that link between background and success.

"That is the moral mission of this Labour Government. That is what we are all as a Government determined to deliver."

Critics say scrapping the cap would be the most effective way of reducing child poverty across the UK. When asked about whether the Government is considering scrapping the cap, the Prime

Minister's official spokesman has also not ruled it out, but insisted there is no single "silver bullet" to tackling child poverty.

‌ The Education Secretary added: "We'll set it all out later on this year, in the autumn. I think it's important that we get it right.

"So what we've heard from experts, from organisations, from those who are supporting families and children in poverty, is that they want a comprehensive strategy that addresses every aspect

of how we can make sure that fewer children are growing up in poverty."

Meanwhile, Dan Paskins, executive director of policy, advocacy and campaigns at Save the Children UK, said: "Every month that goes by while Keir Starmer does not scrap the cruel two-child

limit means thousands of children are plunged into poverty.

Article continues below "We would like to see assurance from Number 10 that this delay means their child poverty strategy contains bold ideas backed with the finance – starting with

scrapping the two-child limit and benefit cap."