South Tyneside councillors call on government to scrap 'disgusting and cruel' two-child benefit cap
A motion calling on the government to abolish the two-child benefit cap has been approved by councillors in South Tyneside.
It was put forward at the latest authority-wide meeting of South Tyneside Council by Green Party councillors, who noted the policy “has inflicted profound harm on families” across the borough and beyond. One councillor labelled the cap disgusting and cruel.
The motion stated the council “resolves to oppose the two-child limit on Working Tax Credit and Universal Credit” and ask the local authority leader to write to the Prime Minister and request the policy be scrapped.
Other clauses included instructing the leader to write to all MPs covering the South Tyneside area, asking them to “commit their public support to the campaign to abolish the two-child limit.”
Initially an amendment to the motion was proposed by Labour’s Councillor Liz McHugh, cabinet member for children and families social care and education and skills.
Alterations proposed included removing the word “oppose” and stating the council “note the concerns of committees and residents” to the two-child limit, along with removing the call to write to the Prime Minister and MPs.
Other changes involved adding that local MPs and the council leader are asked to “continue to highlight deprivation in South Tyneside and continue to support and champion” work to tackle it, along with writing to North East Mayor Kim McGuinness to support her work on child poverty.
However opposition councillors criticised the amendment for attempting to “downplay” and “negate” the original motion, while Labour’s Councillor Alison Strike also called for the amendment to be withdrawn.
Cllr McHugh ultimately decided to withdraw her amendment and the original Green Party motion was approved, with 29 votes in favour, which included several Labour councillors along with all Green Group and South Tyneside Alliance Group representatives.
Elsewhere nine Labour councillors voted to abstain, while 10 voted against the motion.
Councillor David Francis, Green Group leader, speaking while raising the motion, said: “This motion seeks to address a policy that has inflicted profound harm on families across South Tyneside and far beyond, the two-child benefit cap.
“This arbitrary and cruel limit does nothing to address poverty but instead deepens it, punishing children for the circumstances of their birth.
“Over 4,000 children in South Tyneside are growing up in households affected by this cap, that’s 4,000 lives limited before they’ve had the chance to thrive.”
He added: “The evidence is clear, the cap has no impact on employment rates or economic growth, but it has driven families deeper into poverty, exacerbated mental health crises and entrenched inequality.”
The two-child limit on Universal Credit and Child Tax Credit was introduced in April 2017 by the Conservative government.
It prevents families from claiming Child Tax Credit or Universal Credit for more than two children in the household.
Data presented to the meeting (on Thursday, January 23) noted as of 2024, families receive £3,455 per year for their second child under the child element of Universal Credit, and families subject to the cap lose out on this amount per year for each subsequent child.
The motion noted “this policy has been widely regarded as a principal driver of child poverty. This has been evidenced through peer reviewed research.”
Cllr Nicky Gynn, Green Group representative seconding the motion, added: “South Tyneside Council has, and is doing some excellent work to alleviate child poverty, but this policy is one of the biggest drivers of extreme poverty.
“By removing this cap the government would make a substantive and immediate difference to the lives of thousands of children.”
Councillor Andrew Guy, South Tyneside Alliance Group representative, speaking on the impact of the two-child benefit cap, said: “It is disgusting, it is cruel, it causes a massive amount of disparity with income.”
Meanwhile Labour’s Councillor Alison Strike, in calling for the Labour amendment to be withdrawn, said: “I think that everyone in the room, hand on heart, we all actually agree with the motion.”
Elsewhere her party colleague Councillor Eileen Leask said she “cannot vote” for the amendment and instead supported the original motion.
She added: “I’ve stood in this chamber many, many times, banging on about children’s poverty, 40% of our children live in poverty.
“I work all day, every day, trying to help the poor people, who are in the lowest 5% of wealth, in Horsley Hill.”
The approved motion also included requesting the council’s cabinet consider the impact of the two-child limit on South Tyneside residents and determine whether there are any further measures the council could take to mitigate this.
It added that following the outcome of the recent Child Poverty Summit, the council would resolve to work directly with local school leaders to establish what needs the council could help meet.