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Keir Starmer is at odds with his powerful chief of staff over whether to scrap a two-child cap on benefits, according to multiple people familiar with the matter, a costly policy move that the British prime minister is under pressure to make after bruising local election results.

Starmer favors lifting the limit as a way to demonstrate the ruling Labour Party’s commitment to alleviating child poverty, said the people, who asked not to be named discussing internal government matters. His chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, however, has been one of the main opponents of the move, contesting the estimated £2.5 billion ($3.3 billion) expense ahead of the government’s most recent fiscal statement in March.
[…]
Starmer has faced repeated calls from Labour lawmakers to reverse the cap, which currently limits child benefit payments to two children per household. Rather than heed pressure to change the policy immediately upon entering government in July, the government delayed a decision by announcing a consultation on a broader child poverty strategy. McSweeney urged Starmer at that time to rule out scrapping the two-child cap, according to people familiar with the matter. He argued that polling shows that Labour voters view the cap as fair, the people said. Starmer pushed back and removing the cap has remained an option under consideration by the government.

Starmer, Chancellor of Exchequer Rachel Reeves and Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall proposed scrapping the cap in the March statement, according to the people, before concluding there wasn’t enough money to fund it. McSweeney was again opposed to the idea, the people said.

The Downing Street official said any suggestion that McSweeney had blocked a worked-up plan supported by three ministers would not be true.
[…]
Former Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown added to the pressure on Starmer on Wednesday, saying that scrapping the cap was “the cost-effective way of getting more children out of poverty” in an interview with ITV. He separately told Sky News that Reeves could raise £3 billion by either increasing taxes on the gambling industry or reducing the interest paid to commercial banks for their deposits held by the Bank of England.

One government figure in favor of the scrapping the cap countered McSweeney’s polling argument by pointing out that most Labour voters also don’t want child poverty to go up. Lifting the cap is the most financially efficient way of doing that, the person said.

An good article that does its best to highlight the council needing to be effective in some fashion, generate actions. But misses on the NI question, or Welsh Labour being is dissaray too. Still, this is something of a test for Starmer who has seemed to be more internationialist than a home PM to my eyes since his ascendancy

They want you angry. But not at them.

They want your rage pointed downwards. At the man in the tent, the woman in the food bank queue, the family who fled war on a small boat and arrived here with nothing but a name and hope.

All the while, the people actually bleeding us dry glide through Cardiff Bay on yachts, untouched and unbothered.

Let’s be crystal clear here. Wales is not in poverty because of migrants, and it’s not broken because of refugees. The enemy doesn’t come on a dinghy, it arrives in yachts, it’s in a boardroom, a mansion, or a private jet.

And in Wales, that theft is happening in plain sight.

Note: I am the author of this piece, constructive criticism and feedback is welcomed!

The fact that they're asking for bailouts and still trying to pay bonuses is nothing short of a fucking piss take

cross-posted from: https://lazysoci.al/post/26845014

Antisemitic conspiracy theories suggesting Labour is being held back by Zionist interests can readily be found on social media, but none of this is true.

A visible reminder of this came when former leader Jeremy Corbyn got to his feet to challenge Lammy. Under Corbyn’s leadership, Labour became so immersed in antisemitism and so marginalised the Jewish community that the party has had to continue working hard to restore its reputation.**

For this reason, Sir Keir and Mr Lammy have worked hard to support Israel’s right to defend itself in the wake of the horrific 7 October 2023 attacks by Hamas.

As attacks on Gaza by Israel have intensified, Labour has softly attempted to pressure Netanyahu’s government into restraint but never been willing to go the extra mile. Arguably, as Mr Malthouse and other MPs from five different political parties claimed in the chamber, they still have not gone far enough.

But the reality is that the urgency and horror of the situation now facing the people in Gaza is the tipping point where the imminent catastrophe outweighs the shame of Labour’s recent political past.

cross-posted from: https://lazysoci.al/post/26779892

Finally

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/29974786

The analysis by the Equality Trust reveals a stark increase in wealth concentration in the UK, with the nation’s richest families accumulating unprecedented wealth at the expense of the broader population.

1. The number of billionaires in the UK rose dramatically from 15 in 1990 to 165 in 2024, underscoring a significant increase in wealth inequality.
2. The average wealth of billionaires surged by over 1,000% during this period, highlighting the vast disparity in wealth accumulation.
3. The top 50 richest families in the UK collectively possess more wealth than the poorest half of the population, which amounts to over 34 million people.
4. The two richest billionaires in 2024 hold more wealth than all the billionaires listed in 1990, indicating a concentration of extreme wealth.
5. Key sources of this wealth—property, inheritance, and finance—are criticized for contributing to societal and environmental harm, rather than fostering equitable growth.
6. Activists argue that the current economic model creates "job eradicators" rather than job creators, as larger corporations increasingly dominate at the expense of smaller businesses.
7. There is a call for serious reevaluation of economic structures that allow such extreme wealth disparities to persist, suggesting that it is a choice rather than an inevitability associated with wealth.
8. Proponents of wealth redistribution suggest implementing a 2% wealth tax on billionaires, which could have generated substantial national funds for societal benefits.
9. The analysis emphasizes a growing consensus that extreme wealth inequality is detrimental to society, urging policymakers to address it as a central issue.
10. Overall, the findings indicate a need for structured policy changes aimed at reducing wealth concentration and fostering a more equitable economy.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/29937883

Police have been issued guidance on how to search women’s homes for abortion drugs and check their phones for menstrual cycle tracking apps after unexpected pregnancy loss.

New guidance from the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) on “child death investigation” advises officers to search for “drugs that can terminate pregnancy” in cases involving stillbirths. The NPCC, which sets strategic direction for policing across the country UK, also suggests a woman’s digital devices could be seized to help investigators “establish a woman’s knowledge and intention in relation to the pregnancy”. That could include checking a woman’s internet searches, messages to friends and family, and health apps, “such as menstrual cycle and fertility trackers”, it states.

Details are also provided for how police could bypass legal requirements for a court order to obtain medical records about a woman’s abortion from NHS providers.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/29885568

cross-posted from: https://lazysoci.al/post/26713075