SIR KEIR STARMER came under pressure from MPs across the Commons over his cruel plan to cut benefits today.

Labour announced on Tuesday that it will slash £5 billion from the welfare budget by the end of the decade.

In the Commons, Labour’s Diane Abbott told Sir Keir to stop pretending his cuts were moral.

“There is nothing moral about cutting benefits for what may be up to a million people,” she said.

“This is not about morality, this is about the Treasury’s wish to balance the country’s books on the back of the most vulnerable and poor people in this society.”

Colum Eastwood from the SDLP told the prime minister of a constituent “who needed help, she had a disability. It meant that her children have to cut up her food, they have to help her wash between the waist, they have to supervise her when she goes to the toilet.

“Under the Tory welfare system we were able to get that lady on PIP. Under the Prime Minister’s new proposed system she will get zero, nothing.

“And after 14 years of the Tory government — and many of us wanted to see the back of them — can the Prime Minister answer one question – what was the point if Labour are going to do this?”

Green co-leader Carla Denyer urged a wealth tax instead of cuts, a policy quietly supported by many Labour MPs.

“We have a deeply unfair, unequal economic system where vast numbers of people are struggling yet billionaires are getting richer and richer,” she told Sir Keir.

“Does the Prime Minister really think that the way to tackle this is to put the onus onto older people, children and now sick and disabled people rather than on the shoulders of the super-rich with a wealth tax, those people who could most easily afford to pay?”

The answer to her question was that Sir Keir did indeed think that.

He dug in behind his moral posturing, telling Ms Abbott that it was a “moral issue” that one in eight young people were not in employment, education or training.

Sir Keir said that he was “not going to turn away from that” and added that he was “shocked that a million people, young people, are in that position, and I’m not prepared to shrug my shoulders and walk past it.”

Central to Labour’s plans will be the tightening of the eligibility criteria for claiming Personal Independent Payment (PIP) — a key disability benefit. 

The Resolution Foundation think tank estimated that this will mean that up to 1.2m people will lose support of between £4,200 and £6,300 per year by 2030. 

Cuts are also set to be made to incapacity benefits for new claimants judged unfit for work. 

Those under the age of 22 wanting the health top-up of universal credit will no longer qualify.

Campaigners have warned that the proposed change could lead to some private renters no longer being able to afford their rent.

Dan Wilson Craw, deputy chief executive of Generation Rent, said: “Many renters use their PIP to supplement their rent, meaning these changes could lead to them being forced out of their homes. 

“If disabled renters are forced out because of unaffordable rents, they are unlikely to find suitable housing that meets their specific needs.

“For renters under 22, the housing element of their universal credit often doesn’t cover their rent, meaning top ups can be a lifeline that keeps a roof over their head.”

Eleesha Taylor-Barrett, from Acorn union, suggested that if the government wants to cut spending, “it should first address the £70bn it will be giving to private landlords in the form of housing benefits over the next five years — by introducing rent controls and investing in truly affordable council housing. 

“If it wants to support people getting back into work then its focus should be on cutting NHS waiting times and properly funding our social care and support systems, not taking from those who need it most.”