‘Cuts don’t create jobs, they just cause more hardship’ says a letter signed by dozens ofMPs from the right as well as the left of the Labour Party, objecting to proposed cuts in disability benefits
A right pair of cuts: Keir Starmer and his Chancellor Rachel Reeves could soon face a backbench revolt over changes to disability benefits
Croydon’s three Labour MPs today once again shunned an opportunity to put the interests of their constituents ahead of their own parliamentary careers, as Prime Minister Keir Starmer looks to be facing the biggest backbench revolt of his government so far.
More than 40 Labour MPs signed a letter which warns Starmer that the planned cuts to disability benefits are “impossible to support”. The letter called for a pause and change in direction before a Commons vote due next month.
The letter, according to the Grauniad, was signed by MPs from the July 2024 intake as well as Commons veterans and “from the left and right of the party”. But there’s no Croydon MPs among the list of signatories.
Signatory: Walthamstow MP Stella Creasy
“There has already been widespread concern among a number of Labour MPs about proposed changes including a significant tightening of eligibility for personal independent payments (PIPs), saving about £5billion annually,” the newspaper reports.
“It would also involve cuts or freezes to incapacity benefits for people who apply for universal credit but are judged unfit to work.”
Among those who signed the letter are Bell Ribeiro-Addy, MP for Clapham and Brixton Hill, as well as Peter Lamb, a former staffer at Croydon-based The Campaign Company, now MP for Crawley, , as well as Diane Abbott and John McDonnell, Clive Lewis, Stella Creasy, Barry Gardiner, Ian Lavery, Rebecca Long-Bailey and Rachael Maskell.
The names of environment secretary Steve Reed OBE, MP for Streatham and Croydon North, industry minister Sarah Jones (Croydon West) and Natasha Irons (Croydon East) are conspicuous by their absence.
Signatory: Clive Lewis MP
Downing Street suspended seven MPs from the Labour whip shortly after last year’s General Election after they voted in favour of a Scottish National Party amendment to scrap the two-child benefit limit. This latest backbench revolt, coming a week after Labour’s wretched performance in the English local elections, has the potential to be an even bigger test of Starmer’s leadership.
The MPs’ letter says:
“The Government’s Green Paper on welfare reform has caused a huge amount of anxiety and concern among disabled people and their families. The planned cuts of more than £7billion represent the biggest attack on the welfare state since George Osborne ushered in the years of austerity and over 3million of our poorest and most disadvantaged will be affected.
“Whilst the government may have correctly diagnosed the problem of a broken benefits system and a lack of job opportunities for those who are able to work, they have come up with the wrong medicine. Cuts don’t create jobs, they just cause more hardship.
“Ministers therefore need to delay any decisions until all the assessments have been published into the impact the cuts will have on employment, health and increased demand for health and social care. This is likely to be in the autumn and only then will MPs be able to vote knowing all the facts.
Non-signatory: Steve Reed OBE
“In the meantime, the much-needed reform of the benefits system needs to begin with a genuine dialogue with disabled people’s organisations to redesign something that is less complex and offers greater support, alongside tackling the barriers that disabled people face when trying to find and maintain employment. We also need to invest in creating job opportunities and ensure the law is robust enough to provide employment protections against discrimination.
“Without a change in direction, the Green Paper will be impossible to support.”
Read more: Labour polling shows MP Reed more unpopular than Starmer
Read more: Reed took £1,786 football tickets from water company owners
Read more: Reed group fined for slow declaration of £800,000 donations
Read more: #TheLabourFiles: MP Reed, Evans and the Croydon connection
John McDonnell MP was recently a guest on our podcast, The Andrew Fisher Interview, when he was asked about having the Labour whip withdrawn in the dispute over the two-child benefit cap. It is available to listen for Inside Croydon’s paying subscribers by clicking here
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Wonder why Irons, Jones and Reed didn’t sign the letter?
– Weren’t asked
– Were asked but
– don’t care
– not disabled (“when they came for the people with disabilities, I didn’t speak out, because I’m a Labour MP and have no other disabilities…”)
– put self-interest before people with disabilities
– put party unity before people with disabilities
– too scared to speak out because Starmer will get rid of them
Recently a group of right-wing Tories signed a letter calling on the UK to recognise the State of Palestine. That’s how bad things have got under Starmer – he’s taken Labour to the right of right-wing Conservatives. He’s the sort of thing you pick up with a special bag and put in a special bin at the park
Maybe it’s because they hadn’t got a socialist bone in their body, they are party in making constituents suffer in many ways. Reed and Jones don’t surprise me but Irons does.
Yes girls Jones and Irons have got to keep their sub par media career performances going. They have got no opinions other than to keep toeing party lines, no matter how bad the policy.
The same applies to Reed doesn’t it?
I must have found his tv appearances that forgettable. It did surprise me how Irons managed to immediately get tv slots despite being a brand new MP. Croydon MP’s seem to have a strong knack for getting on tv all whilst not doing much for Croydon.
Croydon Conservatives & Labour. Two sides of the same coin.
Two cheeks of the same arse
Newman and Perry. Two arses with the same cheek
Congratulations to those 40 labour MPS who signed a letter against the disability cuts sir keir starmer & rachel reeves chancellor are going ahead with they could of found other options to make savings have these 40 labour MPS ever thought of giving up their membership of the labour party and joining another political party labour are becoming more like the conservative party moving further to the right with their cuts to welfare and disability benefits this is something the conservative party would of done the disabled and people on welfare will not forget this very easily come the next general election in fact people on disability benefits reported on nick ferrari LBC that they will never vote labour again as we have the mayoral and local elections in croydon may 2026 why not do as the rest of the country is doing and vote for the reform party the reform party under nigel farage is surging ahead of the labour and conservative party in the opinion polls people have had enough of the two main party system we have in england i have always voted labour in the past but not again perhaps i will also vote reform and the people of croydon need to do so lets show these main parties we hate them as much as they hate us
If you’ve *ever* aligned with Labour’s values in the past, Reform are not the answer you’re looking for. Please, find better ways to protest.