“Last year, I had my Labour Party Whip suspended because I voted to scrap the Tories’ two child limit & then, without explanation, I had to find out from the media this year that my suspension was not going to be lifted.”
I know that my constituents voted for change, which is why I cannot support policies that push anyone into poverty, writes Apsana Begum MP
The latest research from End Child Poverty proves what we’ve long known – the two-child limit isn’t just another policy; it’s the main driver of child poverty across the UK.
This pernicious cap, which denies families support for third and subsequent children, has pushed hundreds of thousands into destitution and the choice to keep it, will mean that it will continue to do so.
Yet last year, I had my Labour Party Whip suspended because I voted to scrap the Tories’ two child limit and then, without explanation, I had to find out from the media this year that my suspension was not going to be lifted, despite this happening for others in the same position.
I have yet to be told why I was one of two Muslim women singled out in this way.
Meanwhile, the statistics tell a damning story: child poverty is set to rise across most of the UK by the end of this Parliament.
In two-thirds of UK constituencies, at least one in four children now live in relative poverty after housing costs. In my constituency, nearly half of all children are in poverty.
These aren’t abstract numbers – they represent hungry kids going to school without breakfast, families choosing between heating and eating, and parents working multiple jobs but still unable to make ends meet.
Now cuts disability benefits will mean that 42% of people in Poplar and Limehouse in receipt of the Daily Living Allowance of PIP could lose out.
This is part of the Government’s decision to push millions into poverty and worsen inequality across the UK by cutting billions of pounds from benefits supporting disabled people.
The Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) has described this as the most severe cut to disability benefits in a generation. What an indictment!
I am clear: I could never support policies that push anyone into poverty.
Just as I reject stigmatising poverty and blaming people who receive benefits as a way to shift blame away from structural problems and onto individuals.
Rhetoric on pushing people into work ignores the high levels of in-work poverty and that most people are really trying – working and doing everything that society asks and are still unable to escape the cycle of poverty.
In fact, many people receiving PIP work and there is no doubt that the cuts will actually hinder people working.
Other contradictory arguments around these latest cuts insist that the aim is to help disabled people by putting them back to work, but on the other hand, they say this cut will save billions. Of course, the only certain way that cutting support for disabled people saves the billions of pounds, is by making them live on less and without the support they need.
Targeting disabled people for savings is particularly disgraceful given what they have already been through and the persecution they have endured.
Research by the Trussell Trust suggests that most food bank users now live in households where somebody is disabled. There is extensive evidence about the serious harm caused to people subjected to dehumanising assessments and sanctions – and that there are reports of deaths directly related to the social security regime.
In fact, punitive welfare policies for years been horrendously cruel and actively harmful.
People are still being increasingly pushed into more and more insecurity and poverty – particularly impacting women, disabled people, children, and people from marginalised groups.
I know that my constituents voted for change.
After 14 years of austerity, it’s time to end this cruelty and build a welfare system that truly provides the support needed.
Poverty is not inevitable. It is the result of choices made by those in power—choices that prioritise the rich in pursuit of profit over child welfare.
Last year UK’s billionaires added £11 billion to their fortunes. Corporate tax avoidance costs us £35 billion annually. A modest 2% wealth tax could raise £24 billion.
Instead of slashing vital support, the Government should tax wealth fairly and invest in a social security system that protects, rather than punishes, people.
The stakes couldn’t be higher. It’s about what kind of society we want to be.
It is so clear on the doorstep, in the polls, and via recent election results, that people are angry and fed up with the status quo.
I will never accept that tackling inequality and injustice is not possible.
I will always oppose cuts to the welfare we need and continue to stand in solidarity with disabled people and anti-poverty campaigners in fighting against injustice and for a better world in which everyone can thrive.
- Apsana Begum is the Member of Parliament for Poplar and Limehouse, in East London. you can follow her on Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram and TikTok.
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