Category Archives: bridget phillipson

Exclusive: Labour War Of Words As Phillipson And Powell Clash Over 2-Child Benefit Cap

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A fresh war of words has erupted in the Labour deputy leadership race over moves to scrap the two-child benefit cap.

Education secretary Bridget Phillipson took a swipe at her rival Lucy Powell as she urged Rachel Reeves to scrap the hated Tory policy.

HuffPost UK revealed last month that Keir Starmer has already decided to scrap the cap, with the chancellor preparing to announce it when she delivers her Budget on November 26.

Phillipson said that she, rather than Powell, had been leading moves inside government to tackle child poverty.

On Sky News, Phillipson repeatedly stressed that she could put pressure on the chancellor to scrap the benefit cap from inside government – a clear reference to the fact that Powell is no longer in the cabinet after being sacked as Commons leader last month.

She said: “There’s an urgency to this. With every year that passes more children are moving to poverty because of the two-child limit.

“It was a Tory policy. We would not have introduced it. I’m clear what needs to happen. I’ll be in Cabinet arguing for that, and that’s why I’ve made tackling child poverty my number one priority during this campaign.”

Presenter Trevor Phillips asked her: “Do you seriously believe Lucy Powell wouldn’t do all she could to end child poverty?”

Phillipson replied: “I’ve got a track record on actually taking action to lift children out of poverty. It’s been a longstanding cause of mine.”

In another jibe at Powell, Phillipson said: “I want to build on the record of people like Angela Rayner and John Prescott, who were in government, running big government departments, but as the members’ voice at the cabinet table. I think that would give me extra clout.”

But an ally of Powell told HuffPost UK: “Lucy has made the running on this. Scrapping the two child benefit cap wouldn’t have been discussed in the contest if Lucy hadn’t put it squarely at the centre of her campaign.

“It’s well documented that she spoke up about the welfare changes because of the impact on child poverty.”

The clash is further evidence of how the battle to be Labour’s deputy leader has grown increasingly bitter.

In a post on X last week accusing Powell of splitting the party, Phillipson said: “Back me to end child poverty or take us back to our divided past”.

Meanwhile, a Labour source told the New Statesman: “Lucy was sacked from Cabinet because she couldn’t be trusted not to brief or leak. She findamentally lost the trust of colleagues.”

Powell has insisted she will be the Labour members’ voice at the top of the party if she becomes deputy leader.

Ballots close in the contest on October 23, with the winner being announced two days later.

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Labour Deputy Leadership Hopeful Warns Starmer Party ‘Can’t Out-Reform Reform’

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Keir Starmer has been warned to stop trying to “out-Reform Reform” by an MP running to be his deputy.

Left-winger Bell Ribeiro-Addy hit out at the prime minister after throwing her hat into the ring to replace Angela Rayner as Labour’s deputy leader.

She has been joined in the race by education secretary Bridget Phillipson, who becomes the first minister to run.

HuffPost UK also understands Lucy Powell – sacked by Starmer in last week’s reshuffle – will announce today that she is standing after encouragement from allies.

Labour MPs have until 5pm on Thursday to get the 80 nominations they need to get on the ballot paper.

On Radio 4′s Today programme this morning, Ribeiro-Addy said the Labour leadership had got it wrong on the situation in Gaza, the winter fuel allowance and welfare cuts.

Instead, she accused No.10 off becoming more right-wing in an attempt to win back Reform voters.

Ribeiro-Addy said: “We are currently haemorrhaging votes to the Lib Dems, to the Greens, and ultimately all we seem to want to do at the moment is chase down Reform, and we cannot do that. We are not good at out-Reforming Reform, but we can do so much better at being Labour.

“If we keep going down in this direction we are not going to be able to attract or even to retain voters, and I think most people would agree that the most important thing is to make sure that Labour members have confidence in their deputy leader.”

Phillipson, the MP for Houghton and Sunderland South, said she was running “to unite our great party and deliver for working people”.

She said: “I’ve taken on powerful vested interests in the education sector – and even as they threw everything at me, I have never taken a backwards step. I will bring that same determination to every battle ahead of us.

“Because make no mistake: we are in a fight. We all know the dangers Reform poses our country. But not only am I ready for it: I’ve proven we can do it. I’ve shown we can beat Farage in the north-east, while staying true to the Labour party’s values of equality, fairness and social justice.

“With me as deputy leader we will beat them right across the country and unite to deliver the opportunity that working people across this great country deserve.”

Dame Emily Thornberry is also trying to drum up support, but Rosena Allin-Khan has decided not to stand.

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Half A Million More Pupils To Receive Free School Meals In Eligibility Shake-Up

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Over half a million more pupils will qualify for free school meals from September as part of the government’s bid to reduce child poverty.

Under the new rules, all children from households claiming Universal Credit will become eligible for free lunches, saving their parents around £500 a year.

The move will lift 100,000 children out of poverty, according to the Department for Education.

At the moment, only children whose household income is less than £7,400 receive free school meals.

Nearly 2.1 million pupils – almost one in four of all pupils in England were eligible for free meals in January 2024.

Prime minister Keir Starmer said: “Working parents across the country are working tirelessly to provide for their families but are being held back by cost-of-living pressures.

“My government is taking action to ease those pressures. Feeding more children every day, for free, is one of the biggest interventions we can make to put more money in parents’ pockets, tackle the stain of poverty, and set children up to learn.

“This expansion is a truly historic moment for our country, helping families who need it most and delivering our plan for change to give every child, no matter their background, the same chance to succeed.”

Education secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “It is the moral mission of this government to tackle the stain of child poverty, and today this government takes a giant step towards ending it with targeted support that puts money back in parents’ pockets.

“We believe that background shouldn’t mean destiny. Today’s historic step will help us to deliver excellence everywhere, for every child and give more young people the chance to get on in life.”

The move was welcomed by William Roberts, chief executive of the Royal Society for Public Health, who said it would “make a huge difference to thousands of children and parents across the country”.

He said: “As well as putting more money in the pockets of vulnerable families, wider provision of free school meals has been shown to lower the risk of childhood obesity, reduce absenteeism and boost educational attainment.”

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Bridget Phillipson Brutally Slaps Down Lee Anderson In Angry Commons Clash

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Bridget Phillipson brutally slapped down Lee Anderson as the pair clashed angrily in the House of Commons.

The Reform UK MP infuriated the education secretary during a debate on last week’s Supreme Court ruling that sex is defined by biology.

Anderson asked Phillipson: “I don’t need a Supreme Court judgment or ruling to tell me that a bloke shouldn’t be in a women’s changing rooms.

“I want to ask the secretary of state a very simple question for more clarity: can a woman have a penis?”

The minister replied: “I’ll tell you what, blokes shouldn’t beat up women. Maybe he should have a word with his colleague.”

That was a reference to another Reform UK MP, James McMurdock, who was jailed 19 years ago for repeatedly kicking his girlfriend, according to court documents.

He spent 21 days in a young offenders’ institution after admitting the attack.

The MP for South Basildon and East Thurrock, who was elected last July, told Sky News last year: “Nearly 20 years ago, at 19 years of age, at the end of a night out together, we argued and I pushed her. She fell over and she was hurt. Despite being 38 now and having lived a whole life again I still feel deeply ashamed and apologetic.

“Despite us both being very drunk, I handed myself into the police immediately and admitted my fault. I was charged for what I did, not for what has been claimed, and I faced the consequences then and paid for my action in full.”

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Lee Anderson(Reform MP): Can a woman have a penis?

Bridget Phillipson: \"I’ll tell you what, blokes shouldn’t beat up women, maybe he should have a word with his colleague.\" pic.twitter.com/Xs2W6rWRE8

— Haggis_UK 🇬🇧 🇪🇺 (@Haggis_UK) April 22, 2025

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Lee Anderson(Reform MP): Can a woman have a penis?

Bridget Phillipson: “I’ll tell you what, blokes shouldn’t beat up women, maybe he should have a word with his colleague.” pic.twitter.com/Xs2W6rWRE8

— Haggis_UK 🇬🇧 🇪🇺 (@Haggis_UK) April 22, 2025

Phillipson had also raised the incident during an earlier exchange with Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice.

He said: “Now we have got confirmation from the Supreme Court what the definition of a woman is, could the secretary of state confirm that all public sector and private sector bodies will apply that definition with immediate effect?”

Phillipson replied: “The Equality and Human Rights Commission will set out a statutory code of practice that will provide further clarity.

“But I would just say to [Mr Tice] that I will take no lectures from his party about the importance of defending women’s rights, given that one of his own number, that sits on those benches, was convicted and went to prison for assaulting his former partner.”

Nigel Farage last year described Mr McMurdock as “good example to young tearaways” who “picked himself up from a terrible situation and made a big success”.

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