Moment Labour minister skewered on BBC Breakfast as he fails to answer honest question

Labour Care Minister Stephen Kinnock was left squirming on BBC Breakfast on Monday, as presenter Jon Kay asked him one simple question that had him stumbling over his words. The Labour politician is the son of Neil Kinnock, the former Labour leader, who recently called for the two-child cap on benefits to be scrapped.

Jumping straight into the questioning, the BBC host asked the current politician for a simple but honest answer. Referring to Kinnock's two-child cap comments, he asked: "Is your dad right or wrong on that?", but Stephen did not answer with a simple yes or no. Instead, he skirted around the answer and explained that decisions about the budget have "major financial implications" as he passed the buck onto the Chancellor, saying that it was a matter for Rachel Reeves instead. He added: "I am sure that you will agree that it would be wrong for me to start speculating about the budget at this time."

But Jon continued to push as he asked: "However, if you were having a chat with your dad, would you say that he is right or wrong?" Once again, the politician declined to answer.

"You've invited me onto this programme as a government minister," he replied. "I am saying very clearly to you that any decisions that have major financial implications for the government are a matter for the Prime Minister, the Chancellor, the cabinet and nobody else."

It comes as the policy, which prevents most families from claiming means-tested benefits for any third or additional children born after April 2017, has pushed more and more people into poverty across the UK.

The government has been hit by a barrage of complaints and criticism about the policy since it came into effect, with the country's leaders expected to announce a decision on the cap in autumn, when it publishes its child poverty strategy.

It had been due to be published in the spring but has now been delayed until the autumn, with criticism growing.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has openly said that removing the cap will come with a high financial cost. However, she added that the "cost of inaction" is also incredibly high because this scars the life chances of children in this country".

Conservative shadow chancellor Mel Stride defended the policy, which was introduced by his party in 2017. "A lot of people up and down the country go through those hard choices and often sacrifices, in order to have a large family," he told the BBC.

"I don't think it's unreasonable under those circumstances to have a cap at the two-child level for those who would otherwise be relying on benefits for further children."