York MP Rachael Maskell says Labour must scrap post-election benefit cuts to reconnect with voters

Labour MP Rachael Maskell has delivered a strong message to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, urging the Labour government to urgently rethink its policies after Reform UK’s significant gains in England’s local elections.

Rachael Maskell, the MP for York Central, publicly criticised Labour’s welfare reforms, which include cuts to social security that she said were never in the party’s manifesto. She warned these measures were alienating core voters and “forcing them to look elsewhere”.

Appearing on the BBC’s Politics North, Maskell condemned changes introduced since Labour came to power last July. “The cuts to winter fuel, not honouring the Waspi women, and taking away the vital lifeline of support for disabled people — of course, people are confused,” she said.

“If we are not there serving people as they expect us to and as is our duty, then of course they are going to look elsewhere.”

Her comments follow a bruising week for Labour. Reform UK, under Nigel Farage’s leadership, won the Runcorn and Helsby parliamentary by-election, seized control of 10 local councils, and clinched mayoral victories in Lincolnshire and Hull and East Yorkshire. In Scarborough, the party achieved a landslide win in the town council vote.

While Starmer responded by pledging to “go further and faster” on delivering change, Maskell’s remarks suggest growing unrest within Labour’s backbenches over policy direction.

In March, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced sweeping cuts to disability benefits and other welfare support, aiming to reduce annual welfare spending by £5bn by 2030. The government said the reforms would boost work participation and ensure a “sustainable welfare system”.

But Maskell warned these cuts would push the most vulnerable into poverty and worsen mental health crises. “We absolutely need to stop these reforms,” she said. “They will have a massive impact on people, leaving them in poverty and forcing many into poorer mental health.”

She added: “Getting people back into work is a good thing, but for those who cannot work, there has to be vital protection. These are the policies Number 10 and Number 11 now need to pursue — not taking pennies out of the pockets of the poorest.”

The Department for Work and Pensions has defended its approach, arguing that the new system would “unlock work, boost living standards and grow the economy” while still supporting the sick and disabled.

Despite her criticism, Maskell also praised aspects of Labour’s programme, including plans to renationalise the railways, tackle waste in government, and offer more secure employment. “Labour is doing some brilliant things,” she said. “But we mustn’t ruin it with all of these poor decisions.”

The Prime Minister, writing in The Times, maintained that the country was already seeing “tangible proof” of progress, citing falling NHS waiting lists, rising wages, and lower interest rates.

However, he acknowledged public dissatisfaction, saying: “I am acutely aware that people aren’t yet feeling the benefits. Until they do, I will wake up every morning determined to go further and faster.”

As Labour navigates the fallout from the local elections, Maskell’s intervention signals potential turbulence ahead for a party still defining its post-election identity. With Reform UK appealing to disaffected voters on both the left and right, the government may face pressure to reassess the cost—political and human—of its fiscal strategy.

THE GUARDIAN

Former transport secretary Louise Haigh has warned Labour against a “naive” lurch to the right in response to Reform UK’s election gains. In her first interview since resigning, Haigh criticised Keir Starmer’s strategy, urging him to confront rightwing narratives and instead focus on clear battles over taxation, welfare, and public services. She said Labour risks losing left-wing and centrist voters if it continues prioritising Reform-inclined voters. Haigh predicted tax rises would be “inevitable” to meet fiscal rules, and warned further spending cuts could worsen poverty. She criticised the “tough language” around austerity, which she believes fuels anti-immigration sentiment and public disillusionment. Haigh also highlighted Reform’s appeal with left-leaning economic policies like nationalisation. She condemned child poverty and called for a stronger progressive economic offer. Finally, she criticised the culture of briefings against female ministers, saying it stifles cabinet debate. Haigh ruled out a leadership bid but positioned herself as a leading voice of Labour’s “soft left”.

FINANCIAL TIMES

Labour MPS are urging Keir Starmer to reconsider planned benefit cuts after the party’s poor local election showing and Reform UK’s rise. With child poverty projected to increase and disability benefits facing reductions, backbenchers and former ministers are warning that austerity-style policies risk alienating Labour’s core support. Louise Haigh, a prominent soft-left MP, said Labour must avoid pushing “people at the bottom” further into hardship. Others, including Red Wall MPS, are calling for a shift in domestic policy focus, fearing that anger over welfare cuts and weak economic messaging is fuelling support for Farage’s Reform party. The growing backlash includes concerns that Labour is losing voters to the Greens and Lib Dems, as polling shows progressive support is drifting. Chancellor Rachel Reeves faces pressure to raise taxes rather than continue spending cuts. MPS argue that Labour must present a stronger vision of economic justice to maintain its voter coalition and demonstrate the party is genuinely on the side of working people.