By Ending a Cruel Tory Social Experiment, This Budget Clearly Sets Out How the Labour Party Will Fight the Struggle to Revitalize Britain

Just recently, the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, presented a Labour Party budget. The public have been asking for Labour’s purpose and principles to be more distinctly articulated. Through the decisions made – a shift to a fairer tax system, focusing on wealth to pay for addressing child poverty, good public services and the living expenses – we have clearly set out what we believe in.

That’s why Labour MPs cheered in the Commons, and it’s why we are ready for the battles to come. And it’s why the cries from the conservative side began right away.

The Central Dividing Line in UK Government

The central dividing line in British politics is once again on the economy. On the one side Labour, who aim to change it so it helps everyday working people, and on the other, our political opponents, who support the status quo and the unsuccessful doctrine of the past. We must now take on, and win, the debate.

The Tories were given 14 years to resolve things and instead, by every standard, they got far more dire. Their ideological austerity and supply-side economics – tax cuts for the wealthy, reducing investment (causing us with low productivity and wages), and neglecting to support young people post-Covid – didn’t work.

Record of Decline Under the Former Administration

Living standards fell by the largest margin since records began, child poverty reached record levels, NHS waiting lists in England were the highest on record, wages remained flat, a housing crisis became entrenched, young people scarred by Covid were abandoned. The record of failure continues.

A single budget alone can’t fix everything, so Labour has a comprehensive plan for renewal and for restructuring the country. And we have to go out and keep making the argument for why our approach will reap dividends.

Welfare Spending and Youth Deprivation

Under the Tories, welfare spending rose substantially. As did child poverty, because they didn’t address the root causes: low pay, high housing costs, deep inequalities in education, health and regions. The state is forced to paying more to deal with the symptoms instead of the cure.

It’s why we are building more social housing than for a generation, raising wages and new rights for workers, greatly increasing investment in infrastructure and new industries, reducing waiting lists down and bringing down the costs of childcare and energy as we pursue clean power.

Removing the Two-Child Limit

This is also the reason we are completely justified to use this budget to remove the two-child benefit cap.

For almost a decade, since it was enacted, low-income families with children have endured from a cruel social experiment that was branded as fair for working people when it was anything but. Most of the families impacted by it have a parent in work.

It’s done nothing but push 300,000 more children into poverty – which, in the end, costs us more, as well as being callous and immoral.

Tangible Effects in Local Areas

From experience from my own district – where over 5,000 children will be lifted out of poverty as a result of ending the cap – the actual impact it’s had. Children wearing £1 wellies as school shoes, children going to bed without food and cold, living in cramped, mouldy homes, parents during the holidays relying on food banks for a simple meal or small gift for their kids.

I also see the impact on schools, teachers, social workers, doctors and charities who are already overburdened but have to divert time and resources to supporting children who are living with the results of severe deprivation.

Long-Term Effects of Child Poverty

Just one in four pupils from the most disadvantaged families achieve five good GCSEs, compared with nearly three in four among wealthier families. This predisposes them for the challenges they face during their lives: missed potential, financial struggles and ill health. Children who grew up in poverty are more likely to be jobless or poor as adults.

Addressing child poverty isn’t just a ethical duty, it is a future-oriented strategy. Poverty costs the economy significantly more than the three billion pound cost of lifting the two-child cap, or expanding free school meals.

This is the reason we acted promptly in the budget, despite the very difficult economic context. Every day with this cap in place sees over a hundred additional children pushed into poverty. The effects of lifting it will not occur overnight either, so acting early in the parliament was crucial.

The cap was a totem to 14 years of failed rightwing ideology. Now it is gone.

Equitable Funding for Policies

We, as Labour, can also be explicit that these measures are being funded in a just way – from a new gaming tax, eliminating tax loopholes and a new “mansion tax”.

Conclusion

Equity and purpose – that’s how we will win the battle of ideas. This budget is a clear statement that we gained the election as Labour, and will govern as Labour. As I repeatedly said during my campaign to become deputy leader, we must seize back the political megaphone and define the narrative more strongly about what’s really wrong with the country and how we are repairing it. We’ve certainly done that this week.

So let’s maintain it and prevail in this fight about how we will rebuild Britain and address the deep inequalities impeding progress.