More than 40 well-known personalities, including Arlene Phillips, Mark Bonnar, Jason Isaacs, and Bill Nighy, have united to demand the removal of the “cruel” two-child benefit limit in the upcoming Budget.
In a joint plea to Keir Starmer, orchestrated by the foodbank charity Trussell, the celebrities emphasized the urgent need to eliminate the two-child limit, which is causing 109 additional children to suffer financial hardship daily. They stressed that this restriction on social security benefits is unfair to children and is driving families to rely on food banks.
The group of signatories features prominent figures such as actors Simon Pegg, Stanley Tucci, and Jodie Whittaker, comedians Romesh Ranganathan and Aisling Bea, as well as chefs Levi Roots and Tom Kerridge. Footballers Tyrone Mings and Kalvin Phillips have also lent their support.
Levi Roots, the creator of Reggae Reggae sauce who experienced poverty firsthand, expressed his disappointment that families are still struggling to provide for their children in the present day. He urged the government to take decisive action by scrapping the two-child limit to lift hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty.
Similarly, actor Mark Bonnar condemned the welfare system for penalizing children based on the number of siblings they have, instead of supporting families in need. He emphasized the importance of protecting vulnerable families and urged the government to prioritize tackling child poverty by removing the two-child limit.
Actress Anna Maxwell Martin, known for her role in the BBC sitcom Motherland, highlighted the alarming levels of child poverty in the UK and emphasized the necessity of fully removing the two-child limit to safeguard children from hunger and provide them with a better future.
Both Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves have signaled their intention to abolish the two-child benefit limit in the forthcoming Budget announcement on November 26. Reeves emphasized that children should not suffer due to being part of larger families, while Starmer reiterated his commitment to reducing child poverty.
The current two-child benefit limit, implemented in 2017 under the Tory government, restricts child tax credit and universal credit to the first two children in most households. Prime Minister Boris Johnson expressed his personal determination to address child poverty, which currently affects 4.5 million children in the UK.
In conclusion, the call to eliminate the two-child benefit limit has garnered widespread support from influential figures across various industries, all advocating for the prioritization of children’s well-being and the eradication of child poverty in the UK.
