Keir Starmer

Starmer’s disability benefit concessions are not enough, says rebel Labour whip

Spread the love

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/jun/29/starmers-disability-benefit-concessions-are-not-enough-says-rebel-labour-whip

Vicky Foxcroft said co-production with disabled people should have happened ‘absolutely from the start’. Photograph: Teri Pengilley/The Guardian

[Guardian] Exclusive: Vicky Foxcroft, who resigned as whip over welfare bill, urges ministers to work with affected people on changes

The Labour whip who resigned in protest against disability benefit cuts has said Keir Starmer’s concessions do not yet go far enough to win her over, as No 10 launched a fresh attempt to stem the revolt against its welfare bill.

Vicky Foxcroft, who quit her frontbench role over the welfare bill a little more than a week ago, urged the government to work jointly on the changes with disabled people and to publish the review of the system before bringing in cuts.

In an interview with the Guardian, Foxcroft said she had not made up her mind how to vote on Tuesday but would need assurances about further improvements.

“I would hope that actually we start to ensure we listen to disabled people and their organisations right across government. This isn’t just about warm words. This is about making sure we get policy right,” she said.

…

Article continues at https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/jun/29/starmers-disability-benefit-concessions-are-not-enough-says-rebel-labour-whip

Keir Starmer says that the Labour Party under his leadership all feel a small part of Scunthorpe.
Keir Starmer says that the Labour Party under his leadership all feel a small part of Scunthorpe.
Continue ReadingStarmer’s disability benefit concessions are not enough, says rebel Labour whip

Andy Burnham Calls On Labour MPs To Vote Against Welfare Cuts Despite Starmer U-Turn

Spread the love

https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/andy-burnham-calls-on-labour-mps-to-vote-against-welfare-cuts-despite-starmer-u-turn_uk_68617ce7e4b0a244c7130f1f

Keir Starmer with Andy Burnham at the launch of Labour’s election manifesto last year.
via Associated Press

The mayor of Manchester said the PM’s concessions did not go far enough.

Andy Burnham has called on Labour MPs to vote down the government’s welfare cuts – despite Keir Starmer’s attempts to buy off his backbench rebels.

The Manchester mayor said the prime minister had only performed “half a U-turn”, which did not go far enough.

…

He said Labour MPs “face the prospect, if they accept this package, someone could come to their surgery in two years saying ‘why did you vote to make me £6,000 worse off than someone exactly the same, but who was protected because they were an existing claimant’?”

“I hope they think carefully before the vote, because the vote will create that unfairness and divide in disabled people,” he added.

https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/andy-burnham-calls-on-labour-mps-to-vote-against-welfare-cuts-despite-starmer-u-turn_uk_68617ce7e4b0a244c7130f1f

Keir Starmer says that the Labour Party under his leadership all feel a small part of Scunthorpe.
Keir Starmer says that the Labour Party under his leadership all feel a small part of Scunthorpe.
Continue ReadingAndy Burnham Calls On Labour MPs To Vote Against Welfare Cuts Despite Starmer U-Turn

I will vote against the Welfare Bill – I don’t want anyone to feel the regret I’ve had since 2015

Spread the love

Emma Lewell MP

https://www.politicshome.com/opinion/article/i-will-vote-against-the-welfare-bill

The government agreed to make two major changes to the welfare bill ahead of a House of Commons vote on Tuesday (Alamy)

…

On Tuesday, we are being asked to vote for the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill in its original form because the concessions promised are not written into the Bill yet. We are being asked again to ‘trust’ that the Bill will change in committee.

But even with the promised concessions, we are still being asked to tighten eligibility criteria. A cut in support for those who will need it the most.

I am one of several disabled MPs, and not once did anyone from the Cabinet or No 10 reach out to me. Even worse, it appears they didn’t reach out to the multitude of disabled rights organisations or trade unions in agreeing to those concessions. Why were they not in the room when vital decisions about their lives were made?

These concessions are about party management and saving face.

There is no new bill, there are no new explanatory notes, and there are no impact assessments on the new proposals, and no time for sufficient scrutiny. There has been no formal consultation with disabled people. The majority of employment support won’t be in place until the end of the decade, access to work is in a worse state than ever before, it is unclear what the impact on carers’ allowances will be, and it creates a two-tier benefit system where disabled people will be worse off.

…

https://www.politicshome.com/opinion/article/i-will-vote-against-the-welfare-bill

Keir Starmer says that the Labour Party under his leadership all feel a small part of Scunthorpe.
Keir Starmer says that the Labour Party under his leadership all feel a small part of Scunthorpe.
Continue ReadingI will vote against the Welfare Bill – I don’t want anyone to feel the regret I’ve had since 2015

Poll: Majority of Labour members want party to move to the left

Spread the love

https://labourlist.org/2025/06/news-labour-polling-survation-left-move

Alexandros Michailidis/Shutterstock.com

A majority of Labour members want the party to move to the left, according to exclusive polling by Survation for LabourList.

Survation asked Labour members what direction Labour should move in order to win the next election.

They were given four options: move to the left, move to the right, move further and faster on the current agenda, and don’t know.

The most popular answer by far was to move to the left, with 64% of members choosing this option.

…

https://labourlist.org/2025/06/news-labour-polling-survation-left-move

Continue ReadingPoll: Majority of Labour members want party to move to the left

The Guardian view on Labour’s disability benefits rethink: concessions suggest strategy not a change of heart

Spread the love

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/27/the-guardian-view-on-labours-disability-benefits-rethink-concessions-suggest-strategy-not-a-change-of-heart

Many Labour MPs still believe these are the wrong reforms and will vote against the bill next week. Photograph: Alishia Abodunde/Getty Images

Sir Keir Starmer’s plans risk creating lasting inequality – and alienating the very voters who once believed his party stood for their protection

…

The upshot is that existing claimants would be protected, but future ones face tougher rules. Two people with identical conditions could receive support, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies, that differs by up to £6,560 a year – purely due to timing. This, we’re told, is compassion. The savings – halved to £2.5bn a year – come by offloading the cost on to future claimants. MPs rightly fear this locks in a two-tier system that is deliberately harsher on disabled people.

Older Labour MPs will remember denouncing this very playbook. A decade ago, Iain Duncan Smith pioneered a slow, procedural tightening of welfare – hitting new claimants first, then reassessing the rest – precisely to defuse resistance. Labour opposed it then. Today, it is governing by the same method. It feels out of step with a post-pandemic Britain grappling with a cost of living crisis.

Many Labour MPs believe these are still the wrong reforms and will vote against the bill when it comes back to the House of Commons next week. Clearly, tightened eligibility and a two-tier system may exclude many who need support. If the government wants to raise money, it might ask a little more of those with the broadest shoulders – not those with mobility aids, care plans and the audacity to ask for a fair deal. If ministers truly believe they are acting decently, they should publish the impact assessment and be honest about the consequences.

…

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/27/the-guardian-view-on-labours-disability-benefits-rethink-concessions-suggest-strategy-not-a-change-of-heart

Keir Starmer says that the Labour Party under his leadership all feel a small part of Scunthorpe.
Keir Starmer says that the Labour Party under his leadership all feel a small part of Scunthorpe.
Continue ReadingThe Guardian view on Labour’s disability benefits rethink: concessions suggest strategy not a change of heart