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NextImg:Eamonn Holmes fumes 'you are picking on the wrong people' as Labour passes benefits bill

Eamonn Holmes has criticised Labour's welfare reforms as "morally wrong", arguing that ministers are "picking on the wrong people" with their benefits changes.

The Government's benefits bill passed through the House of Commons yesterday evening, with 335 votes in favour and 260 against, but only after significant last-minute concessions were made to rebel Labour backbenchers.

Discussing the bill on GB News, Eamonn slammed the bill as "morally wrong".

He said: "People could also be looking at this and thinking, this is morally wrong. What he's doing here, he's picking on the wrong people.

Eamonn Holmes

Eamonn Holmes fumed that Labour is "picking on the wrong people"

GB NEWS

"I say this till I'm blue in the face, if someone said to me come on into the Treasury and save some money today, I could do it in no time.

"There's things you're going to find that are going to affect people. Not a huge amount of people but some.

"But you look at this and you think this was picking a fight where he didn't have to pick a fight, really."

Political commentator Fraser Myers responded: "Definitely the way they've gone about this has been picking on the wrong people, certainly. But I do think the broader welfare situation needs to be dealt with."

Eamonn said: "What we've learnt about that though is that there's just not an appetite to deal with it. So I wonder if it can ever be dealt with? Because every time we're going to go near reforming the benefit system, you're going to have MPs going, oh no, no, no."

Myers said: "We're going to see that with every difficult question is that the benefit system, the tax system, the planning system, we haven't had any of the Government's promised reform planning as of yet.

"Let's see what happens as soon as there are threats to build lots of houses in various people's constituencies. What will MPs say about that?

"It seems as if there is really not an appetite for any kind of reform that might be in any way disruptive."

The vote triggered the largest Labour rebellion under Sir Keir Starmer's premiership, with 42 Labour MPs voting for an amendment proposed by Rachael Maskell that would have killed the bill entirely.

In March, the Government set out plans to reform the benefits system, including proposals to restrict access to Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and to halt increases to the health-related component of Universal Credit.

Starmer

Changes to PIP will now be postponed until the Timms review reports back in autumn 2026

PARLIAMENTLIVE.TV

Last night the Government made a significant U-turn on PIP reforms, with Sir Keir Starmer effectively scrapping the entire section of the bill.

Changes to PIP will now be postponed until the Timms review reports back in autumn 2026, leaving no alterations to the benefit system for over a year.

The last-minute compromise was offered to rebel backbenchers to secure passage of the legislation, though critics argue these concessions have rendered the bill ineffective.