Ayr MSP hits out at Labour over two-child benefit cap vote

Ayr SNP MSP Siobhian Brown expressed "deep concern" after Labour failed to support a nationalist amendment to scrap the cap.

Labour also suspended seven of their MPs for six months for rebelling and supporting the amendment to the King's Speech.

Ms Brown said the measure, brought in by the Conservative government in 2017, had pushed hundreds of thousands of families across the UK into poverty.

Analysis suggests abolishing the two-child cap would lift 250,000 children out of poverty at a cost of between £1.3 and £2.5 billion.

But Ayrshire's new Labour MPs said their party was promising "real action" to end child poverty".

Ms Brown said: “Scrapping this cap should have been a top priority for this new Labour Government. It was their chance to help the most vulnerable in society, yet they have failed.

"It looks like more of the same from Keir Starmer’s government. Can Scottish Labour tell us what the change they repeatedly mentioned during the election actually is? Modern Labour is the epitome of the term red conservatism.

“The fact these MPs have been suspended is also incredibly worrying. Democracy is clearly not for Labour. And it speaks volumes about how Scottish Labour MPs will be voting in the future, regardless of what their constituents want, as none of the rebels were Scottish.

“The SNP government continues to mitigate against these cruel austerity measures despite the fact our purse strings are tied. Scrapping this policy was the bare minimum Labour could have done to end child poverty and food insecurity, which is on the rise.”

But Ayrshire Central Labour MP Alan Gemmell responded: "All four Ayrshire Labour MPs want to get rid of the two-child benefit cap when the finances allow - as does every Labour MP.

"People in Ayrshire know there is a huge difference between 17 years of political stunts and real action to tackle poverty by the Labour Party in Government.

"It’s important to note that too many children living in poverty are in working households. Last night we voted for a King’s Speech that will make work pay and see 200,000 Scots receive a genuine living wage."

North Ayrshire and Arran Labour MP Irene Campbell added: "Of course I want to get rid of the two-child benefit cap when the finances allow - as does every Labour MP. 

"Scottish Labour voted for a transformative King's Speech that will deliver a new deal for working people that will tackle exploitative employment practices and low pay, deliver action to bring down bills and establish a child poverty taskforce."

And Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock Labour MP Elaine Stewart said: "Last night we voted for a for King’s speech that will do an enormous amount to lift people out of poverty and voted against an SNP amendment that criticised the Government for not lifting two-child cap in 18 days.

"People in Ayrshire know there is a huge difference between 17 years of political stunts and real action to tackle poverty by the Labour Party in Government.

"The immediate challenge on the two-child cap is the disastrous state of the public finances, which we’ve inherited from the Tories."

Kilmarnock and Loudoun's new Labour MP Lillian Jones added: "Labour are committed to an ambitious child poverty strategy, which we have set to work on immediately.

"The Prime Minister has established a new Ministerial Taskforce to drive action on child poverty, co-chaired by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and the Secretary of State for Education. A new specialist Child Poverty Unit in the Cabinet Office will leave no stone unturned in Labour’s mission to improve children’s lives.

"The last Labour government took over half a million children out of poverty - and lifted millions of children out of absolute poverty overall. This Government has a mission to create and spread opportunity for every child and young person in our country. Living in poverty scars children’s lives and their futures, this Labour government will bring change our children need.”