Oh dear. It seems that some Labour ministers are in desperate need of some media training. First, there was Seema Malhotra mixing up the inflation rate with interest rates. Now, Darren Jones – Rachel Reeves’ No. 2 – has managed to put his foot in it on her proposed benefit cuts. Appearing on Politics Live this lunchtime, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury was asked about the government’s newly-published impact assessment. It says that there will be an additional quarter of a million people – including 50,000 children – in relative poverty in 2029/30 as a result of its welfare changes.
Host Jo Coburn asked Jones for the justification for someone on Personal Independence Payments (PIP) losing £4,500 a year. He replied:
So, I’ve not seen the impact assessment because as you say, it’s just been published. But my understanding is what the impact assessment doesn’t account for is the benefit that you get from our additional money into support for training skills or work.
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