Keir Starmer is facing mounting pressure from charities to scrap the controversial two-child benefit cap, amid fresh warnings that failure to act could plunge child poverty to record levels.

A powerful coalition of charities, including Save the Children, Barnardo's, the Children's Society and the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG), has backed new polling that shows overwhelming public support for prioritising children in government spending-even among voters tempted to defect to Reform.

The survey, commissioned by the charities, found that nearly three-quarters of the public (73%) believe all "children deserve a good childhood, even if it costs the government more to support families that need it."

A similar proportion (71%) agreed that "children should be a priority for government investment."

Alison Garnham, chief executive of CPAG, speaking on behalf of the group, told the : "Almost a year after the election, the government's manifesto commitment to tackle child poverty remains hugely popular.

"A child poverty strategy that increases living standards and improves life chances will make the crucial difference to children, their families and the country alike.

"The public stands in support of the 4.5 million children in the UK living in poverty and now it's time for government to act - starting by scrapping the two-child limit."

The policy, introduced by the Conservatives in 2017, restricts key welfare payments to the first two children in a family. While Scotland plans to mitigate the effects of the cap from next year, Downing Street continues to resist demands for abolition-even as its own child poverty taskforce prepares to unveil a long-awaited strategy this summer.

Labour strategists are said to be wary of removing the cap, fearing a backlash from voters who could shift towards Nigel Farage's Reform party. But the polling suggests this caution may be misplaced.

Among 2024 Labour voters now eyeing Reform, 76% agreed that "low benefit levels for families with children means children have unequal opportunities"-exactly the same figure as among loyal Labour supporters.

Meanwhile, 82% of the Reform-curious said the wealth gap between rich and poor families was too wide, compared with 86% of those sticking with Labour.

Ed Dorrell, partner at the research firm Public First, which carried out the poll of 2,008 adults last month, said: "Potential switchers from Labour to Reform, the Greens and the Lib Dems are united in wanting to end child poverty, in thinking the government has a role to play in this and in thinking that reversing benefit cuts would help.

"If Labour wants to win their lost voters back, making progress on child poverty is something to prioritise, not play down."

The latest pressure comes not only from campaigners but from within Starmer's own ranks. Baroness Ruth Lister, a former director of CPAG, has called on the Labour government to introduce legally binding targets to reduce child poverty and to make these goals central to its mission.

In a report published by Compass, a left-leaning pressure group, she urged Labour to lift the two-child limit and abolish the benefit cap. Labour MP Simon Opher, writing in the foreword to the report, stated bluntly:

"In the UK around one in three children live in poverty.

As a society, and as a government, we can do better. Nothing is more important."

Labour's general election manifesto pledged an "ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty" and vowed to end widespread reliance on food banks, describing it as a "moral scar on our society." But with fiscal constraints biting, ministers are reportedly exploring less costly alternatives, such as a three-child limit or reduced benefits for third and subsequent children-options that campaigners say would do little to address the underlying crisis.

In her report, Lister emphasised the need for genuine investment, stating that money could be raised from those "with the broadest shoulders." She also called for the involvement of those with lived experience of poverty in shaping and monitoring the child poverty strategy, increases to universal credit and child benefit, and a move towards universal free school meals.

Official figures released this spring revealed a grim picture: 4.5 million children were living in poverty in the UK as of April 2024-an increase of 100,000 on the previous year and the third consecutive annual rise.