RACHEL Reeves faces a Labour revolt as it emerged her benefits blitz will plunge 250,000, including 50,000 children, into poverty.
The effect of the Chancellor’s purge has stirred up dozens of Labour MPs who are threatening to vote against it.
She has cut back harder after budgeting watchdogs rubbished her forecasts.
To plug a £1.6billion black hole, she froze the Universal Credit health top-up at £50 a week for new claimants and cut the standard rate rise to £106.
A total of 370,000 people will be losing their PIP payments, while 2.25million will have health support frozen.
More than 3million households will lose £1,720 a year on average, according to the Government’s own analysis.
[boxout headline=”Inaction on welfare bill, say the Tories ” featured-image=”33920575″ intro=”By HELEN WHATELY, Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary “]RACHEL Reeves has consigned Britain to managed decline.
In black and white at yesterday’s emergency budget, we saw growth, unemployment and borrowing all going in the wrong direction. Meanwhile the tax burden is going up with living standards going down.
But Labour’s biggest failure is inaction on the spiralling welfare budget.
Costing £100 billion by 2029, and claiming the working lives of 2,000 people a week, Labour need to grip this. Yesterday was Reeves’ chance to change course. But she instead chose to seal Britain’s fate.
Bungling Ministers getting the maths on welfare wrong by billions set the tone for the day. But the contents of the emergency budget showed more than anything that their hasty cobbled together plans are nothing more than tinkering round the edges. We need people to come off benefits and into work – but the Government is letting us all down by shirking the hard work needed to make this happen.
They confessed that their welfare reforms will push 200,000 people into absolute poverty and get no one into work – so they are cutting not curing. Meanwhile the benefits bill will head on up towards £100 billion.
The Labour party is fundamentally divided on the issue. It’s why they will never be able to grasp the nettle and make the tough, but necessary choices.
So, what we have instead ended up with is a rushed, poorly thought through and the worst of all worlds. They’re leaving the benefits bill to spiral and letting down disabled people who genuinely need help. The country deserves better.
[iframe src=”https%3A%2F%2Fdatawrapper.dwcdn.net%2FRQnIg%2F3%2F” height=”800″ mobile_height=”1200″ width=”100″ /]
In a clumsily worded justification, Treasury Minister Darren Jones likened the plans to stealing children’s pocket money.
Labour MP Debbie Abrahams said the reforms would worsen health.
Ms Reeves said she was confident her £1billion jobs support package would lift families out of poverty.
She said the 250,000 figure in the analysis was based on no one getting back to work.
It comes as fears of a global trade war worsened after US President Donald Trump imposed a 25 per cent tariff on all vehicles imported into the US.
The tax, due to go into effect in early April, could severely damage many UK car manufacturers who rely on exporting their cars to the US.
In 2023, cars were the second most valuable good exported from the UK to the US, with £6.4 billion worth of vehicles making their way across the pond that year.
There are fears of a financial squeeze on automakers who depend on global supply chains, and this will likely raise the price of vehicles in the US.
A knock-on effect could see Trump’s tariffs lead to an increase in prices in the UK, especially for cars and vehicle parts.
[boxout headline=”What are Work Capability Assessments?” intro=”The DWP uses the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) to evaluate a claimant’s ability to work when applying for Universal Credit due to a health condition or disability.”]The WCA focuses on assessing functional limitations rather than specific medical diagnoses.
It considers both physical and mental health, awarding points based on how an individual’s condition impacts their ability to carry out daily activities.
After the assessment, claimants may be placed into one of two groups – Limited Capability for Work (LCW) or Limited Capability for Work and Work-Related Activity (LCWRA).
Claimants assigned to the LCW group are recognised as currently unfit for work but may be capable of returning to employment in the future with the right support and assistance.
Those in this group are required to engage in work-related activities, such as attending Jobcentre appointments or training courses.
Failure to comply with these requirements may result in sanctions, including a reduction or suspension of benefits.
Claimants are placed in the LCWRA group if their health condition or disability is considered so severe that they are not expected to be able to work or participate in any work-related activities in the foreseeable future.
Those in the LCWRA group receive an additional amount on top of their standard Universal Credit allowance currently worth £416.19 a month.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”Millions hit by benefit cuts as Rachel Reeves warns ‘if you can work, you should work!’ in bid to fix ‘broken system’” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6370585177112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]
[boxout headline=”What is the Universal Credit standard allowance?” intro=”UNIVERSAL Credit is a welfare scheme which was designed to combine several of the old “legacy benefits” into a single monthly payment.”]The standard allowance is the basic monthly payment provided to individuals or families who qualify.
The amount you receive depends on your age and whether you’re single or in a couple:
- Single, under 25: £311.68 (£316.98 from next month)
- Single, 25 or over: £393.45 (£400.14 from next month)
- Couple, both under 25: £489.23 (£497.55 from next month)
- Couple, one or both 25 or over: £617.60 (£628.09 from next month)
You may also be eligible for additional amounts if you have children, have a disability or health condition, or need help with housing costs.