Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has pledged that a future Tory government would reverse Labour’s expected decision to scrap the two-child benefit cap, warning that Britain “cannot afford” the extra welfare spending.
Speaking at a press conference in central London on Tuesday morning, flanked by shadow chancellor Mel Stride, Mrs Badenoch said the Conservatives would “unwind” any move by Labour to lift the cap, arguing that abandoning the limit would undermine long-term fiscal responsibility.
“On the question of unwinding changes Labour makes to the two-child benefit, I think we are putting people on notice, we cannot afford this,” she said. “If we keep allowing Labour to change the benchmark for where we are, we’re never going to solve these problems. We need to start living within our means, that is something I will stand by.”
She added that Britain was still suffering the consequences of policy shifts made during the last Labour government:
“Many of the problems we have now are because we did not unwind the mistakes from Labour in 2010. That’s a promise I am making now.”
‘Only the Conservatives believe in the fairness of the cap’
Badenoch stressed that the Conservatives are now the only party committed to maintaining the cap, accusing opponents of ignoring fiscal reality.
“Only the Conservatives believe in the fairness of the two-child benefit cap. Every single other party in politics – the Lib Dems, the Greens, and even Reform want to scrap it,” she said.
She criticised Reform UK figures Nigel Farage and Zia Yusuf, claiming their own proposals offered inconsistent messaging on welfare:
“In reality they want to increase benefits by scrapping the cap, they just don’t get it, none of these parties do. The Conservative Party are the only party in this country committed to living within our means.”
Badenoch: Reeves preparing Budget ‘smokescreen’ for tax hikes
Much of the press conference focused on the coming Budget, with Badenoch warning that Chancellor Rachel Reeves was preparing to raise taxes while attempting to shift blame onto external factors.
“The truth is, next week Rachel Reeves is going to put up people’s taxes to spend more money on benefits,” Badenoch said. “Everything else is a smokescreen for this simple fact, a fact she cannot deny.”
She accused the Labour government of using narratives about Brexit, global tariffs and inherited financial pressures to justify higher spending:
“Next week Rachel Reeves is going to tell you a story… The wicked Tories and the black hole they’re somehow creating in the public finances… This story is nonsense.”
According to Conservative analysis, scrapping the two-child cap and shelving previously-planned welfare reforms together cost roughly the same as Labour’s revenue from freezing tax thresholds—leading Badenoch to argue that working households are being made to foot the bill.
“Labour are raising taxes to pay for Keir Starmer’s weakness on welfare,” she said. “All this Government is delivering is higher taxes and out-of-control spending. Nobody voted for this.”
‘I don’t have a time machine’ – Badenoch distances herself from previous Tory decisions
Pressed on whether previous Conservative governments had contributed to today’s high tax burden, Badenoch asked reporters to judge her leadership on what she intends to do next, not on past decisions.
“I have said, the taxes were too high after the previous Conservative government. I am the new leader of the Conservative Party, I’m not a former prime minister,” she said.
“I don’t have a time machine to go back and fix what other people did. We can see those things didn’t work, we have learned those lessons, we’re going to try something new.”
Tories will back ‘sensible’ immigration measures – but insist the ECHR must be left
Badenoch also signalled that the Conservatives would support the Government on asylum and border reforms where they align with Tory proposals.
“On asylum, we will support them on sensible measures. The Home Secretary has arrived where we were in 2023. The rest of her party is still in 2005, they’re living in a different world,” she said.
But she insisted the Government’s approach cannot succeed without withdrawing from the European Convention on Human Rights:
“What the Home Secretary doesn’t understand is that all these sensible measures she’s talking about will not work if we’re in the ECHR… She’s going to learn that lesson as there is endless lawfare judicial review of the policies – that’s what happened to us.”
Reform UK ‘copying’ Conservative policies
Badenoch took aim at Reform UK, accusing the party of replicating Conservative proposals without putting in the necessary policy development.
“We spent a year making sure our policies are robust and stand up to scrutiny,” she said. “That is not the same for Reform, who wait for us to announce things, copy it then tweak it slightly. That will not work in Government.”
Christian values and the welfare system
Her remarks followed a speech to the Conservative Christian Fellowship on Monday evening, in which she framed welfare reform as both a moral and Christian imperative.
Quoting scripture, Badenoch argued that individuals and families carry obligations to provide for themselves and their communities, saying:
“The Christian recognition that we all have duties… To ourselves, to our families and to the community we are part of.”
She added that welfare should act as “a trampoline, not a trap – cushioning the fall, then propelling you back on your feet.”
Kemi Badenoch also offered to give the Archbishop of Canterbury a crash course on Britain’s ballooning benefits bill saying she’s “very happy” to send him “a briefing” spelling out the facts.
The Tory leader was then grilled at her press conference by the Daily Telegraph’s Tim Stanley, who asked how her own faith squares with Church of England calls, including from the Archbishop himself, to scrap the two-child benefit cap.
Badenoch didn’t hold back.
“It has been very interesting to see the Church of England stray into politics,” she shot back.
Then came the zinger:
“Let’s be honest, the spending that’s going on right now is off the scale. I’m very happy to send the Archbishop of Canterbury a briefing with the facts.”
Conservatives “need some time” to think up potentially “revolutionary” policy, Kemi Badenoch
She told the press conference: “We don’t know what sorts of problems we’ll be dealing with at the next election so we’re not writing that manifesto now.
“We’re going to need some time to look at how we’re going to fix the mess that Labour is making – we may need to do something really revolutionary, that’s what we’re working on.
“I have promised I’m not making any announcements until we have plans to back them up, that is my guarantee. We will think through every single thing we do.”
A renewed Conservative pitch
With the autumn Budget approaching, Badenoch used the press conference to sharpen the dividing line she wants voters to see: a Labour government she says is raising taxes to expand welfare, versus a Conservative Party committed to fiscal restraint, controlled borders and targeted support for workers.
Podiums at the event carried this year’s Conservative conference message: “Stronger economy, stronger borders.” Two Union Jack flags framed the stage as Badenoch and Stride delivered their warnings about Labour’s fiscal direction.
The Conservative leader closed by insisting the country must embark on something “really revolutionary” to restore confidence and stability:
“We need to start living within our means… That is something I will stand by.”
