UK Study Links Two-Child Benefit Cap to Widespread Child Poverty

A significant proportion of children in the UK live in poverty, with at least one in four children affected in two-thirds of constituencies, according to a Loughborough University analysis for the End Child Poverty Coalition. The two-child benefit cap, a policy limiting support to only two children through universal credit, is strongly correlated with these high child poverty rates, especially in regions like the North East, West Midlands, and Wales. There is increasing pressure on the government, including Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Chancellor Rachel Reeves, to scrap this cap as part of the forthcoming child poverty strategy, which could cost around £3.5 billion but potentially lift hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty. Public opinion among parents in the North East is mixed, with some acknowledging the financial strain of raising more than two children but others advocating for lifting the cap to better support families. Former Labour politician David Blunkett, who grew up in poverty, acknowledges the moral imperative to reverse the policy but warns that fully removing the cap may provoke backlash from taxpayers and argues that simply increasing payments may encourage larger families. Overall, debate continues on balancing fiscal responsibility with the urgent need to reduce child poverty, with various stakeholders calling for bold government action.