Here's how many North East children are set to benefit as MPs vote to scrap child benefit cap
Labour’s pledge to scrap the controversial two-child benefit cap is a step closer to law after draft-legislation to axe the policy cleared the Commons, meaning 68,000 children across the North East are set to receive increased support.
The figure equates to 18,410 households in the region being able to access child benefit beyond their first two children, including 1,960, 2,260, and 1,040 homes in Sunderland, Newcastle and South Tyneside.
First introduced by the Conservatives in 2017, the policy restricts child tax credit and universal credit (UC) to the first two children in most households.
This week, MPs voted 361 to 84, a majority 277, to pass the Universal Credit (Removal of Two Child Limit) Bill at its third reading in Parliament.
It will be further scrutinised by peers in the House of Lords before it can become law, but the Government has said it wants to ditch the two-child limit from April (2026).
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Pat McFadden said: "In the North East alone, an estimated 68,000 children will benefit from the lifting of the two-child limit, giving them the foundation they need to succeed in school and go on to get secure, well-paid jobs.
“Scrapping this measure is not just right thing to do, it’s an investment in a generation that will drive our economy forward for decades to come."
According to analysis by the solving poverty charity the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, the removal of the two child cap will lift 400,000 children out of poverty nationally.