New work and pensions secretary cannot commit to ending benefits freeze next year

The new work and pensions secretary has refused to commit to ending the benefits freeze next year despite pressure from MPs to end the controversial policy.

Thérèse Coffey said she could not give a "definitive outcome" on whether Boris Johnson's government would renew the freeze on benefits for working-age people in April 2020, as suggested by her predecessor Amber Rudd.

In her first appearance at the Work and Pensions Committee, Ms Coffey was grilled by MPs over the welfare freeze, which was introduced by George Osborne in 2016 as part of the government's austerity agenda.

Asked about ending the freeze, she said: "I'm in discussions with Treasury about this [120 benefit rates] but until I get the analysis which is due before the end of the month, then I won’t be in a position to say exactly what we’ll do on every single product line.”

Chairman Frank Field demanded to know why money had not been allocated to help struggling families from the prime minister's "magic money tree".

Ms Coffey replied: "I think there’s a general desire from the prime minister to see how we have that increased prosperity and how we then share the benefits of increased prosperity with everyone in society.

"I can’t give you a definitive outcome on what we will do."

She said the government was "looking carefully" about what it could do with benefits into 2020.

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