Election 2024: Child poverty campaigners call for Labour to abolish two-child limit as first step to meet manifesto commitment to reduce child poverty

CPAG and Action for Children warn that Labour's commitment won't even get off the ground unless the two-child policy, that has driven record child poverty 'more than any other policy', is ditched

The Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) and Action for Children have called for the Labour Party to abolish the two-child limit as a first step towards fulfilling its manifesto commitment to reduce child poverty.

Responding to yesterday's launch of the Labour Party Manifesto 2024 - that includes a commitment to ‘develop an ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty’ - CPAG says -

'A child poverty strategy is imperative and extremely welcome but its first action point has to be abolishing the two-child limit which more than any other policy has driven child poverty to record levels.'

In addition, CPAG calls for Labour to scrap the benefit cap and to increase the rate of child benefit to bring about 'real change' for the four million children currently in poverty, saying that -

'Our responsibility to the future starts with ensuring all children can have a good start in life. Today's manifesto is a good first step, but no route to happy healthy children and a strong economy starts with record child poverty. We will need to see detailed policies and targets that demonstrate how a reduction in child poverty will be achieved.'

Meanwhile, echoing CPAG's call for early action from a new Labour Government to address child poverty, chief executive of Action for Children Paul Carberry said -

'You can’t give our children their future back or kickstart growth without ending child poverty, which is making all of us poorer.

Labour's proposed strategy to reduce child poverty won’t get off the ground until they ditch the cruel two-child limit and benefit cap policies. We urge them to think again on this.

We want to see the Labour Party - and all political parties - commit to ending child poverty in the UK once and for all.'

For more information see CPAG’s response to the Labour Manifesto and Action for Children responds to the Labour Party's Manifesto launch.

NB - in relation to the Labour's commitments in other areas of social welfare law, reactions have included -

• Shelter chief executive Polly Neate has welcomed Labour's commitment to end no-fault evictions and increase social housing provision;
• Crisis chief executive Matt Downie says he supports the party's recognition that a cross-government strategy to end homelessness is needed, while also welcoming Labour's rent reform and housing supply commitments;
• King's Fund chief executive Sarah Woolnough has criticised the manifesto as largely dodging the issue of social care reform, saying the promises of change could be best described as 'a plan to come up with a plan'; and
• the Resolution Foundation's review of Labour's package of employment rights reforms - that includes increased 'day one' employment rights and a right to a contract reflecting regular hours - warns that while these are bold and laudable policies, their impact and risk will depend on the details reached during consultation.

For more information on all the social welfare law commitments in the Labour Manifesto, see the rightsnet summaries Welfare Rights, Housing, Employment, and Community Care.

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