Sir Keir Starmer to work ‘constructively’ on scrapping 'pernicious' two-child benefit cap in Scotland

Plans to abolish the cap were announced as part of the Scottish Budget on Wednesday, but require the co-operation of the UK government as it holds the relevant data.

First Minister John Swinney raised the issue with Sir Keir in private talks ahead of the British-Irish Council (BIC) meeting, which both men attended in Edinburgh on Friday.

Mr Swinney told journalists: “The Prime Minister indicated to me that he would work constructively with us on taking forward that commitment, which is welcome, because I need the co-operation of the United Kingdom government to enable us to achieve our objectives of lifting the two-child limit.”

SNP ministers have described the cap – which means families can only claim some benefits for their first two children and not for any subsequent youngsters – as “pernicious”.

However, a senior UK minister said the “money for this commitment has not been set aside” by the Scottish Government.

Pat McFadden, a key figure in Sir Keir’s government, told the press conference after the BIC meeting that Scottish ministers would be supplied with the relevant data.

He added: “The First Minister’s Government, like any government, will have to identify the money for that. That has not happened yet.”

Stressing the UK government shares the “desire to reduce child poverty”, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster said the child poverty taskforce it had established would report next year.

Mr McFadden said: “We don’t believe it’s just about benefits, we think there are other things that contribute to child poverty.”

Mr Swinney said the Scottish Government was seeking to end the cap “because we are confident it will lift children out of poverty” and would complement other policies introduced by the SNP at Holyrood, such as the Scottish child payment, a weekly benefit paid to low-income families with children.

Funding for the preparatory work for the policy is “factored into the 2025/26 Budget”, Mr Swinney added. With the measure not due to be introduced till 2026, he said funding to cover its costs would be included in the 2026/27 spending plans.

Asked if tax rises or spending cuts elsewhere would be needed to pay for this, Mr Swinney said: “The Scottish Government will fund its commitments as it always does, within the funding that is available to it. That is what we have done for 17 years.”

Mr McFadden stressed the Scottish Government had seen the “largest real-terms increase” in its block grant in the history of devolution thanks to the Labour government’s Budget in October.

“It is, of course, a matter for the Scottish Government how they spend that money,” he added. “I’m glad they have the extra resources to make those choices.”

Mr Swinney previously rejected suggestions the move was linked to the 2026 Holyrood election, in which the SNP will be fighting for votes with Labour.

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has said his party will “work constructively” with the SNP on ending the two-child cap, but he insisted it was “a policy without a penny”.