Universal Credit
Universal Credit system and reform
Based on 13 parliamentary votes
Related Welfare and Benefits Issues
How Parties Voted on Universal Credit
Government alignment shows how often each party voted with the government's stated position. Issue-aligned direction shows agreement with the AI-identified supportive stance.
Voted with government positionVoted in issue-aligned direction
Recent Votes
| Vote | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|
Vote on New Clause 3, an amendment to the bill removing the two-child benefit limit. Based on the debate, this related to additional reporting or consultation requirements around the removal of the limit, which the government was already supporting in principle but opposed this specific clause. Yes = Support adding extra requirements (such as impact assessments or consultation provisions) to the bill removing the two-child limit, going beyond what the government proposed · No = Oppose the additional requirements in New Clause 3, backing the government's approach to removing the two-child limit without extra conditions attached Govt: No | 75-290 | 23 Feb 2026 |
MPs voted on the final passage of a Bill to abolish the two-child limit on Universal Credit, which currently restricts child elements of the benefit to the first two children in a family. Removing this limit aims to reduce child poverty by ensuring all children in low-income families receive equal support. Yes = Support removing the two-child benefit cap so that all children in low-income families receive equal Universal Credit entitlements, reducing child poverty · No = Oppose removing the two-child limit, likely citing fiscal cost concerns or preference for keeping existing welfare constraints Govt: Aye | 364-86 | 23 Feb 2026 |
MPs voted on whether to pass a bill removing the two-child limit on Universal Credit, which currently restricts child welfare payments to the first two children in a family. The government argued the policy traps children in poverty and has failed to achieve its stated aims, while opponents defended it as encouraging personal responsibility. Yes = Support removing the two-child limit on Universal Credit, allowing families to receive welfare support for all their children and reducing child poverty · No = Oppose removing the two-child limit, arguing it encourages personal responsibility and that the state should not subsidise choices to have larger families Govt: Aye | 459-106 | 3 Feb 2026 |
Vote on Amendment 38 to the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill, which would have provided greater certainty and protections for disabled people with fluctuating conditions while the government's review of PIP assessments (the Timms review) is ongoing. Critics argued the Bill was putting cuts before the review, leaving vulnerable people uncertain about their entitlements. Yes = Support Amendment 38 to protect disabled people with fluctuating conditions from uncertainty caused by welfare changes being implemented before the Timms review on PIP assessments is completed · No = Oppose the amendment, backing the government's approach to proceed with the Bill as drafted without the additional protections for people with fluctuating conditions Govt: No | 152-335 | 9 Jul 2025 |
A vote on Amendment 50 to the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill during its Committee stage. Without debate excerpts, the precise content of the amendment is unknown, but it was defeated heavily, suggesting it was opposed by the Labour government. Yes = Support Amendment 50 to the UC and PIP Bill, likely seeking to modify or restrict changes to disability or welfare benefits proposed in the Bill · No = Oppose Amendment 50, backing the Government's original Bill text without the amendment's proposed changes Govt: No | 106-416 | 9 Jul 2025 |
A vote on Amendment 39 during the committee stage of the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill. Without debate excerpts, the precise content of the amendment is unknown, but it was heavily defeated by 469 votes to 35, suggesting it was opposed by the Labour government. Yes = Support Amendment 39 to the UC and PIP Bill, likely proposing a change to the government's proposed welfare reforms · No = Oppose Amendment 39, backing the government's version of the UC and PIP Bill without this change Govt: No | 38-466 | 9 Jul 2025 |
MPs voted on whether to pass the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill at its final stage in the Commons. The Bill makes changes to welfare benefits, including a gradual increase to the Universal Credit standard allowance, and had been debated at length including proposed amendments to speed up or expand those increases. Yes = Support passing the UC and PIP Bill into law, backing the government's phased approach to reforming Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment. · No = Oppose passing the Bill in its current form, either because its welfare cuts go too far or because the reforms are insufficient or poorly designed. Govt: Aye | 337-244 | 9 Jul 2025 |
Vote on whether Clauses 2 and 3 of the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill should remain part of the Bill. These clauses relate to changes to Universal Credit and PIP eligibility or rates, with the vote determining whether the government's welfare reform proposals proceed through committee stage. Yes = Support retaining the government's welfare reform clauses in the Bill, allowing changes to Universal Credit and PIP to proceed · No = Oppose the clauses standing part of the Bill, seeking to remove or block these specific welfare reform measures Govt: Aye | 334-137 | 9 Jul 2025 |
Vote on a technical amendment (New Clause 8) to ensure that Universal Credit payments for claimants in the Limited Capability for Work and Work-Related Activity (LCWRA) group in Northern Ireland rise in line with inflation, supporting a separate duty on the Department for Communities in Northern Ireland. The amendment was backed by left-wing Labour rebels and crossbench MPs opposed to welfare cuts affecting the most vulnerable. Yes = Support protecting Universal Credit for the most vulnerable claimants (those with severe disabilities or terminal illness) in Northern Ireland from real-terms cuts by guaranteeing inflation-linked increases · No = Oppose this amendment, either because the government considers it unnecessary, does not want to constrain spending in this way, or prefers to handle Northern Ireland welfare policy separately Govt: No | 131-442 | 9 Jul 2025 |
A vote on Amendment 12 to the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill during its Committee stage. Without debate excerpts, the exact content of this amendment is unknown, but it was defeated heavily, suggesting it was an opposition or backbench attempt to change the government's welfare reform legislation. Yes = Support Amendment 12 to the UC and PIP Bill, likely seeking to modify or restrict elements of the government's welfare changes · No = Oppose Amendment 12, backing the government's UC and PIP Bill in its unamended form Govt: No | 108-369 | 9 Jul 2025 |
How is this calculated?
Government alignment (primary bar) shows how often a party's MPs voted with the government's stated position on this issue. This is the most comparable metric across parties, as it measures the same reference point for everyone.
Issue-aligned direction (secondary bar) shows how often MPs voted in the direction tagged as supportive of this issue by AI analysis. For example, if a vote is tagged “pro-environment”, a Yes vote counts as aligned. This can be misleading when the tagged direction happens to align with opposition amendments rather than government bills.
Why these metrics may differ: Opposition parties often vote against government bills for strategic or procedural reasons, even when they broadly support the policy area. The government alignment metric makes this clearer by showing the actual voting pattern against a consistent reference.
Source: Commons division data from the UK Parliament Votes API. Alignment direction determined by AI analysis of vote stance tags. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.