PM insists he WON’T back down on £5bn benefits slash despite unprecedented rebellion that could overturn his 156-seat majority
A defiant Sir Keir Starmer has insisted he can “read the room” despite facing an extraordinary rebellion from 134 MPs threatening to kill his controversial welfare reforms – with Labour insiders warning it could even force him out as leader.
The Prime Minister dismissed the growing revolt as mere “noises off” while at a NATO summit in The Hague, even as his own MPs back home plot to inflict a humiliating defeat that would shatter his authority just 12 months into power.
In an astonishing show of defiance, Starmer told journalists: “I’m comfortable with reading the room and delivering the change the country needs. Is it tough going? Are there plenty of noises off? Yes.”
Rebellion reaches crisis point
The scale of the revolt has reached unprecedented levels, with 134 MPs now backing a “reasoned amendment” that would effectively kill the government’s Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill.
Among the rebels are approximately 120 Labour MPs – enough to overturn Starmer’s 156-seat majority if they all vote against the government.
The amendment has also been signed by:
- Former Labour MPs now sitting as independents, including ex-Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell
- Rosie Duffield, who resigned the Labour whip last year
- MPs from Northern Irish parties
‘Complete nightmare’
Political insiders are calling it a “complete nightmare” for Starmer, with Politico’s London Playbook warning: “If the government can’t get these cuts through with a 156-seat majority, particularly with loads of young MPs hungry for a ministerial career, then what hope does it have for future fiscal challenges?”
Several MPs are privately claiming the crisis “could end up with Sir Keir being forced out as leader” – an extraordinary threat to a Prime Minister who won a landslide victory just a year ago.
One Labour MP supporting the government admitted the amendment was “very awkward” but hoped ministers could still contain the scale of the rebellion.
Mayors pile on pressure
The revolt has been turbocharged by interventions from Labour’s most powerful regional figures.
Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham told BBC Newsnight: “When the PLP [Parliamentary Labour Party] delivers its collective wisdom in such numbers, it is invariably right. And it is right on this. I would say to the Government, listen to the PLP.”
London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan added that ministers “must urgently think again” about the plans.
£5bn black hole
The welfare reforms are designed to save £5 billion by 2029/30 through tightening rules around disability benefits and Universal Credit.
But Whitehall’s own impact assessment has revealed the human cost:
- 250,000 people pushed into poverty
- Including 50,000 children
- Disabled people facing tighter assessments
- Cuts to Personal Independence Payments (PIP)
‘Threats and intimidation’
As the rebellion grows, Starmer’s team appears to be resorting to hardball tactics.
MPs considering voting against the government have reportedly been:
- Threatened with losing the whip
- Warned they could face deselection
- Told they cannot arrange to be absent from Parliament for the vote
The threats echo Starmer’s ruthless response last year when seven Labour MPs revolted over the two-child benefit cap – all were immediately stripped of the party whip and remain excluded from the parliamentary party.
Minister quits in protest
The crisis deepened last week when Lewisham MP Vicky Foxcroft resigned as a government whip in protest at the cuts – the first frontbench resignation over the issue.
Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall has been locked in desperate talks with backbenchers trying to head off the revolt, but rebels say they want:
- Full impact assessments of the PIP cuts
- Proper consultation with disabled people
- Movement on the scoring system for benefits
‘Fiery showdown’
Monday evening’s meeting between Labour MPs and Kendall was described as “fiery,” with backbenchers furious at being asked to vote before proper consultation with disabled people.
Treasury Select Committee chair Meg Hillier, who is leading the rebellion, said: “We don’t want to defeat the Government but we want the Government to think again. We are being asked to vote before consultation with disabled people and before impact assessments.”
Starmer digs in
Despite the scale of the revolt, Starmer used Tuesday’s cabinet meeting to double down on his position.
“The prime minister opened cabinet by setting out that the government has a clear mission to rebuild Britain, fix what is broken and restore hope, and that requires hard, honest choices,” a No.10 spokesman said.
Starmer told his ministers the welfare system was “currently failing people, trapping millions, telling them the only way to get help is to declare they will never work again.
Vote goes ahead
Deputy PM Angela Rayner confirmed at Prime Minister’s Questions that Tuesday’s vote will go ahead as planned, despite swirling rumours the government might pull the bill.
Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride twisted the knife, calling the bill “dangerously rushed and ill thought through” and reminding Labour MPs: “Many on the backbenches could be forgiven for thinking they have heard this before with the winter fuel payment where they were marched up the hill, and we all know where that story ended.”
Reading the room?
As Starmer jets between NATO meetings claiming he can “read the room,” his MPs back home are sending a very clear message – this could be the moment his iron grip on the Labour Party finally breaks.
If the amendment passes, it would be a catastrophic blow to a Prime Minister who prides himself on party discipline and could mark the beginning of the end of his honeymoon period in power.
Photo by Simon Dawson / No 10 Downing Street, taken on 10 July 2024 during the NATO summit’s meetings with President Joe Biden and Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, used under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic licence 🇬🇧
