Universal Credit uplift could be extended under plans favoured by work and pensions ministers
The £20 weekly uplift in Universal Credit could still be extended beyond March under plans favoured by work and pensions ministers, The Daily Telegraph understands.
With Sir Keir Starmer due to force a Parliamentary vote on the issue on Monday, Boris Johnson on Friday held talks with the Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Therese Coffey, the Work and Pensions Secretary.
Discussions over an extension are understood to have taken place, although insiders insisted that the talks remained “active” and that no timeline for a final decision had emerged from the meeting.
Ministers are also coming under mounting pressure to provide free school meals again over the February half-term, with the Prime Minister's spokesman insisting that support was already being provided to families through the Covid winter grant scheme.
It comes amid a growing rift among Conservative backbenchers, with veteran MPs on Friday urging the Chancellor to push back against calls for an extension of the Universal Credit boost from colleagues in northern “Red Wall” seats.
The issue risks coming to a head on Monday, when Labour is due to hold two opposition day debates and votes in the Commons on the benefit uplift and on free school meals provision.
Allies of Mr Sunak say he is “very reluctant” to agree to an extension of the uplift, which costs £6bn annually, as he seeks to bring the public finances under control.
However, Whitehall insiders claim that Ms Coffey’s department is pushing for the additional support to continue into the new financial year.
The Prime Minister, who earlier this week told the Liaison Committee of senior MPs that the public want to see the Government focus on “jobs and growth in wages” over welfare, is said to still be keeping his options open due to uncertainty over the economy and when coronavirus restrictions end.
It is understood that officials are now in the process of mapping out potential scenarios heading into the Spring, with the severity of covid-19 restrictions and the state of the economy likely to prove pivotal in whether an extension is granted.
Downing Street declined to comment when approached, although other Government sources acknowledged there were differences in opinion between the Treasury and Department for Work and Pensions.
Meanwhile, other sources close to Mr Sunak on Friday evening denied he was reluctant to extend the uplift, adding that all options remained on the table and were dependent on how circumstances evolved in the run up to the Budget in March.
On Friday senior Conservative MPs urged Mr Sunak to hold his ground, warning that an extension risked permanently hampering efforts by previous administrations to reduce the size of the welfare state.
They fear that the move could soon become permanent, along with the extension of free school meal provision over the school holidays, in turn blurring the lines between the Conservatives and Labour.
Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, one prominent backbencher said: “I think there is a lot of concern about this. It’s about adopting a position rather than acting like the Grand Old Duke of York.
“While there is continual flip-flopping about restrictions it’s very difficult to say we’ll stop you from working but we won’t support you.
“If they are to start relaxing restrictions then it’s possible to hold a line on returning welfare benefits to normal levels.”
A second said: “The problem is that these temporary measures risk becoming permanent.
“I can see there is a purpose in continuing it in the pandemic. But you can bet your boots that afterwards people will be agitating for it to remain.
“The Government must stop operating on an ad-hoc policy and announce now that this will end after the pandemic. We must end this period of state reliance.”
