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SINCE Keir Starmer took office in July last year, keeping the two-child benefit cap has dragged 30,000 more children into poverty, according to fresh analysis.
The Labour Government’s own modelling suggested that its cuts to the Winter Fuel Payment, meanwhile, will leave around “100,000 more pensioners in relative poverty”.
Oh, and that Chancellor Rachel Reeves using her Spring Statement to outline extended cuts to PIP and the health element of Universal Credit will push a further 250,000 people into poverty, including 50,000 children.
You can dress it up in all the rhetoric of “tough decisions” and “£22 billion black holes” that you want but this is a conscious move that will push some of society’s most vulnerable into poverty.
So, for this week’s Branch Office Updates newsletter, we saw fit to put the spotlight back onto those making these decisions and how this will (or won't) impact them.
What is Keir Starmer’s net worth? How much does the Anas Sarwar household make in unearned income? Does Rachel Reeves actually need to make her own cheese sandwiches?
Starting with the head honcho, Keir Starmer is certainly wealthy.
Taking into account his land, home, law and political career, the Prime Minister is reported to have a net worth of approximately £7.7 million.
Before his career in politics, he was previously director of public prosecutions and head of the Crown Prosecution Service from 2008 to 2013, a role which is known to command a hefty salary.
Keir Starmer's salary for being a Labour MP was £76,961 in 2021/2022 and he received an extra £49,193 for being leader of the opposition for several years.
He and his wife Victoria reportedly bought their home in Kentish Town in 2004 for around £600,000, with its value roughly doubling since.
Starmer also reportedly also owns seven acres of land in Surrey next to his childhood home, which he inherited in 1996.
The Mail on Sunday reported in May 2020 that it is worth up to £10m.
And, of course, as Prime Minister he earns £166,786 per annum plus room and board at 10 Downing Street.
While these cuts were made at the UK Government level, Anas Sarwar has been notably quiet – even backing many of the moves including the recent welfare cuts.
The Scottish Labour leader comes from a very wealthy family, owing to a series of successful businesses including cash and carry firm United Wholesale Scotland (UWS).
In 2017, his shares in the business were reported to be worth around £4.8 million. However, he relinquished control of them under scrutiny in 2017 during his leadership election and passed them into a trust for his children.
To note, when it comes to household wealth, his wife Furheen still benefits, receiving around £40,000 a year in unearned income every year in dividends.
What about Rachel Reeves? She told Sky News last month that she lunches on her own handmade cheese sandwiches to save £5 instead of going to Pret A Manger.
Less relatable to the common person was when, before coming into power, she was reportedly earning £86,000 a year (well over double the average salary) and added that she “winced” at her bank balance after paying for her mortgage, gas, electricity and food bills.
She now makes almost double that at £163,891 per annum.
