Labour has warned that plans by Reform UK and the Conservative Party could push thousands of families in Wales back into poverty ahead of the May Senedd elections.
According to Labour, both parties intend to reintroduce the two-child benefit cap in Wales, a policy recently scrapped by the Labour government at Westminster. The cap limited the amount of child-related benefits families could receive, regardless of household need, and was widely criticised for worsening child poverty.
First Minister of Wales, Eluned Morgan, said the policy had caused serious hardship in some of the country’s most vulnerable communities. She stressed that Labour governments in Cardiff and London are now working together to ease pressure on household finances.
“The two-child limit imposed by the Conservatives was cruel and unfair,” Morgan said. “While Labour is putting more money into families’ pockets, Reform and the Tories would undo that progress and drive hundreds of thousands of children back into poverty.”
Labour estimates that scrapping the policy will benefit about 19,000 families in Wales, helping an additional 69,000 children grow up in households better able to meet their basic needs.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson echoed the warning, accusing Reform and the Conservatives of forming what she described as a “child poverty pact”.
“Labour’s action means more security for families and better chances for children,” Phillipson said. “Reinstating the two-child cap would wipe out these gains and leave families struggling once again.”
Labour says the issue highlights a clear dividing line ahead of the Senedd elections, arguing that voters face a choice between policies aimed at reducing poverty and those that could deepen financial hardship for working families across Wales.
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