At Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) on Wednesday 7 May, Lib Dem MP Roz Savage challenged Labour Party PM Keir Starmer on inequality:
Under the Conservatives, inequality has surged with now over 14 million people… living in poverty while the richest 1% see their incomes soar. Of the developed countries we are now the ninth most unequal. Will the prime minister listen to the Liberal Democrats, the public and many of his own backbenchers and commit to reversing changes such as PIP, the winter fuel allowance and two child benefit cap and introduce clear poverty reduction targets to ensure that any economic growth benefits those who need it most.
Starmer: anti-anti-austerity
Indeed, from 2024-2025 UK billionaires saw their wealth go up from an already staggering £170 billion to £181 billion. Meanwhile, the least well off 10% are literally in debt. Nonetheless, Starmer is upholding the Tories’ two child benefit cap (restricting benefits to two children). Analysis from Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) shows the cap will increase the number of children living in poverty from 4.5 million to 4.8 million.
Starmer also cut the winter fuel allowance for some of the least well off pensioners. Yet the prime minister’s own government admitted that the cut will plunge 250,000 more elders into poverty by 2029-30.
As if austerity 2.0 wasn’t already well on its way, Starmer is also cutting support for disabled people. Again, the government’s own analysis shows that this will impact 700,000 families who are already in poverty.
Appalling response at PMQs
Then, at PMQs, Starmer had the gall to say:
Mr Speaker, we’re already delivering 750 free breakfast clubs boosting the minimum wage for over 3 million that’s the lowest paid workers in our country and the child poverty task force is looking at every lever that can be pulled
Also, the status quo for free school meals is unhealthy sponsors such as Greggs and Kellogg’s.
Starmer has raised the minimum wage by around 80p per hour. Does he expect that to solve the richest 1% owning more than 70% of us? And this approach arguably doesn’t make sense because it treats all employers as the same. When in fact, the UK’s top 100 FTSE companies make an average of £64,000 profit annually per employee. That’s a private tax of double the UK’s average yearly wage for every single employee at those corporations.
Instead, Labour could make a company’s minimum wage relative to their profits. This would enable small and up and coming businesses to pay less and mean that employees aren’t being ripped off by big business. It would link employee pay directly to the company’s performance, driving up productivity.
Starmer showed yet again at PMQs that he is taking us in the wrong direction.
Featured image via House of Commons
