Labour benefits backlash rages as MPs warn Cabinet minister that cuts will 'devastate lives'

Labour fury implicit benefits cuts erupted successful the Commons contiguous arsenic MPs warned ministers they volition 'devastate lives'.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall came nether occurrence from her ain broadside arsenic she took questions successful the House.

She faced demands to wantonness 'unfair' efforts to trim the spiralling costs, with left-wingers alternatively insisting the authorities should 'tax the rich'.  

Keir Starmer is facing perchance his largest rebellion yet implicit plans to marque it harder to assertion disablement payments and spell connected the semipermanent sick.

More than 80 backbenchers person enactment their names to a backstage missive to No10 raising concerns astir the plan, which volition prevention £7billion and aims to get those who tin enactment into jobs.

They are said to beryllium unhappy astir the information that the afloat interaction of the cuts volition not beryllium revealed until aft the ballot successful June.

It comes aft much than 40 MPs from the party's near said they would not ballot for the alteration due to the fact that of the interaction connected those already struggling to marque ends meet.

Ms Kendall tried to mollify choler successful the enclosure by announcing she has launched a reappraisal of idiosyncratic independency payments (Pip).

'Personal independency payments is simply a important payment that makes a publication towards the other costs of surviving with a disability,' she said. 

'I cognize however anxious galore radical are erstwhile there's speech astir reform, but this Government wants to guarantee Pip is just for radical who request it present and into the future.

However, Bradford East MP Imran Hussain said: 'Many of the 41,000 disabled radical successful Bradford, who trust connected Pip to unrecorded with dignity and stableness are rightly horrified by these projected costs. In peculiar the four-point regularisation has the imaginable to devastate the lives of tens of thousands of radical successful Bradford overnight.

'So fto america beryllium clear, these plans would instrumentality distant the captious lifeline from those with the top need, surviving successful the astir deprived areas, often. I cannot enactment immoderate cuts that worsen inequality successful places similar Bradford.

'So I accidental to the minister, successful implicit sincerity, delight perceive to the increasing calls, successful this spot and retired there, to scrap these unfair cuts and alternatively bash the close happening by taxing the ace affluent truthful they tin wage their just share?'

Ms Kendall replied: 'I perceive precise intelligibly what my honourable person says, but I besides privation to beryllium wide to the House – for radical who tin ne'er work, we privation to support them. For disabled radical who tin work, we privation to enactment them.

'The information is that if you are a disabled idiosyncratic and successful work, you are fractional arsenic apt to beryllium mediocre than if you are retired of work. We privation to amended people's chances and choices by supporting those who tin work, to bash so, and protecting those who cannot.'

Fellow Labour MP Polly Billington took contented with plans to halt those aged nether 22 getting entree to the wellness constituent of Universal Credit.

'Can she explicate to maine however denying entree to the heath-related constituent of Universal Credit volition assistance these young radical into work?' she asked.

Replying for the government, employment curate Alison McGovern said: 'We person a consultation connected a fig of argumentation areas relating to the question that's been asked, but arsenic I've said, successful the end, young radical request a accidental and accidental and a start, and successful places similar Thanet wherever determination is important poorness and challenges but large opportunity, I privation to marque definite we service some employers and the young radical who request them overmuch better.'