SNP accuses Labour of 'failing first major test in Government' as party defies calls to scrap two-child benefit cap

SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn had urged government backbenchers to “vote with their conscience” and support a House of Commons amendment to scrap the two-child benefit cap.

MPs voted 363 to 103, majority 260, to reject the amendment tabled in the name of Mr Flynn, who claimed afterwards not a single Scottish Labour MP backed his amendment pressing for the policy to be abolished “immediately”.

Only seven Labour MPs rebelled against the government, all of whom are on the left of the party. They were Apsana Begum, Richard Burgon, Ian Byrne, Imran Hussain, Rebecca Long Bailey, John McDonnell and Zarah Sultana, several of whom have been outspoken critics of Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership and defied the whip previously.

In a hardline approach, the Prime Minister immediately suspended the rebels, who had been warned they would lose the whip if they voted against the government.

There were 42 Labour abstentions, including Diane Abbott who had previously spoken out against the policy.

Mr Flynn said: “Tonight, the Labour Party has failed its first major test in government.

"Labour MPs had the opportunity to deliver meaningful change from years of Tory misrule by immediately lifting thousands of children out of poverty - they have made a political choice not to do so.

"This is now the Labour government's two child cap - and it must take ownership of the damage it is causing, including the appalling levels of poverty in the UK.

"The SNP will campaign vigorously for the cap to be abolished at the earliest opportunity. It is the very worst of Westminster's welfare cuts, and every day it remains more children suffer.

"The Labour government has a moral duty to go much further and faster to tackle child poverty. Scrapping the cap is the bare minimum we should expect. In order to eradicate child poverty, the UK government must take much bolder action, including matching the Scottish Child Payment UK-wide by raising Universal Credit by £26.70 per child, per week at the UK budget."

Criticising the vote on X, formerly Twitter, SNP MP Pete Wishart wrote: "Only 7 Labour 'rebels' on 2 child benefit cap. Appalling. What a start. This is now theirs to own."

SNP analysis suggests an estimated 87,100 children in Scotland live in households hit by the two child cap over the last year - with a total of 1,486,760 children hit across Britain.

The SNP proposal was backed by Plaid Cymru, the Green Party and other MPs, including former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn – who is now an Independent.

There were widespread calls to support the government at Monday’s meeting of the Labour parliamentary party, where a series of backbenchers gave speeches warning MPs it was important to look unified in the first big vote of the new Commons.

The cap was introduced in 2015 by then-Conservative chancellor George Osborne and restricts child welfare payments to the first two children born to most families.

Speaking during the debate on Monday, Labour’s Kim Johnson (Liverpool Riverside) said the “punitive policy needs to be consigned to the dustbin of history where it belongs”, while Tory former cabinet minister Suella Braverman also warned the policy was “putting more children and families into relative poverty”.

The government has said work is under way on its plans to tackle child poverty, although it has stopped short of committing to ending the two-child benefit cap.

There was an intervention from a Labour backbencher, who pushed ministers from her own party to ease the two-child benefit “rape clause”, which exempts some families from the claims limit.

Stella Creasy (Walthamstow) said: “She will have heard the concern across this House about the Conservatives’ two-child cap on benefits. Because it exists, in the last year alone, over 3,000 women have had to fill in a form to admit to the DWP (Department for Work and Pensions) that they have been raped and had a child that was non-consensual.”

Immigration minister Dame Angela Eagle replied: “The task force on child poverty’s work is beginning and all aspects of the mess which the Conservatives have left us with – including this disgraceful clause – will be being looked at.”

On Tuesday, the Work and Pensions Secretary claimed government has to do “the sums” before committing to axing the two-child benefit cap.

Liz Kendall said she is “absolutely passionate about driving down child poverty” and that it is a “real priority for this Government”.

But, pressed on whether that means abolishing the cap, she told Times Radio that Labour was elected “on the promise that we would only make spending commitments that we know we can keep”.

She said: “I’m not into a wink and a nudge politics.

“I’m not going to look constituents in the face and tell them I’m going to do something without actually having done the sums, figuring out how I’m going to pay for it, figuring out how we transform opportunity for those children, not just in terms of their household income, which is essential, but about having sustained improvements to helping people get work and get on in work, more childcare, early years support, sorting out the dire state of people’s housing.

“It’s got to be part of a much bigger approach.”

She also stressed that the Labour government cannot tackle the “dire inheritance” from the Tories “overnight”, pointing to crises facing the health service, council budgets, housing and welfare.

Liberal Democrat amendment K, which called for action on healthcare and sewage dumping, was also selected but failed to pass the Commons.

Party leader Sir Ed Davey said before the vote: “I am proud the Liberal Democrats have tabled this amendment to the King’s Speech to stand up for care and carers.

“We will be the voice of carers in this Parliament and work with others to find solutions to the big challenge of social care.

“Millions of people voted for the Liberal Democrats because they wanted us to deliver change and a fair deal. Now, from our plan to tackle the sewage scandal to more support to fix our NHS and care, Liberal Democrat MPs are making the case for just that in Parliament today.”