Chancellor Rachel Reeves is preparing to abolish the controversial two-child benefit cap, a move that will provide a significant financial boost to millions of families across the UK.
What is the Two-Child Cap?
The policy, introduced under the Conservative government, restricts the amount of Universal Credit that families can receive to their first two children. This means that larger families with three or more children have not been able to claim additional support for their subsequent children through the benefits system.
Ms Reeves is expected to officially announce the scrapping of the cap as part of her Budget, which is scheduled for November 26.
Impact on Families and the Wider Debate
The removal of this limit will enable larger families to claim hundreds of pounds extra each month in Universal Credit payments. This decision comes after sustained pressure from Labour MPs and campaigners who argue that the cap has been a major driver of child poverty, affecting millions of children through no fault of their own.
The Chancellor explained her reasoning in an interview with the BBC, stating, “I don’t think we can lose sight of the costs to our economy in allowing child poverty to go unchecked.” She emphasised that a child should not be penalised for their family's financial situation.
Ms Reeves also highlighted the complex and often changing circumstances that families face, noting, “In many cases you might have a mum and dad who were both in work, but perhaps one of them has developed a chronic illness or one of them has passed away.” She further pointed to situations like adoption and foster care as reasons why family sizes can change, making the cap particularly unfair.
A Divisive Policy Comes to an End
The two-child limit has always been a contentious issue. Supporters of the cap argued that it was unreasonable for the state to fund couples who continued to have more children. However, critics have consistently maintained that the policy directly harms children's life chances and well-being.
With this landmark change, the Chancellor is signalling a significant shift in social security policy, aiming to provide a more robust safety net for all children, regardless of their position in the family.
