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Government policy
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12/06/2012
Ending child poverty by 2020 – progress report
Labour governments cut child poverty on a scale and at a pace unmatched by other industrial nations during the period 1998–2010, campaigners have concluded. But they warn that the government’s policies since 2010 risk wiping out all the gains made.
The Child Poverty Action Group report brings together 15 expert contributions, each looking at a different aspect of child poverty. They assess both the record on child poverty up to 2010 and the prospects to 2020 (the target date in law for the elimination of child poverty).
Category: Reports -
11/06/2012
Independent assessments of the Budget Report
As background to the Budget, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) published a summary of recent analyses looking at the likely trends in household incomes over the next few years and, in particular, how they are likely to be affected by tax and benefit changes that are currently planned for 2012/13 (see IFS Briefing Note BN126). This found that households with children will lose most from tax and benefit changes in the coming year (see IFS press release).
The IFS also looked at the impact of changes to the tax threshold and the aim of increasing the personal tax threshold to £10,000 (see A £10,000 tax allowance: who would benefit, and would it boost the economy?). The IFS concludes:
Category: News stories -
31/05/2012
European Commission warns over UK poverty
The European Commission has warned over the potential impact of benefit cuts on UK poverty, particularly child poverty.
The Commission has assessed progress made in ‘reforming’ national budgets in line with agreed European Union priorities. Governments generally have not done enough to allow the EU to meet its targets for the fight against poverty, it says.
In a separate report on the UK the Commission says that:
Category: Reports -
29/05/2012
Child poverty target under attack
The existing method for measuring child poverty is inadequate, according to a new think-tank report. It says the method fails to acknowledge that poverty is about much more than a lack of income.
The report comes from the Centre for Social Justice, established by the current Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith when he was in opposition. It directly criticises the income-based targets for eliminating child poverty contained in the previous Labour government’s Child Poverty Act 2010.
Category: Reports -
22/05/2012
Social mobility strategy – progress report
The government has published a progress report on its social mobility strategy (launched in April 2011). It highlights a doubling of free early education places for disadvantaged children aged 2, the ‘pupil premium’ to help support the most disadvantaged young people through school, and the ‘youth contract’ to help young people needing extra help to earn or learn.
The report also sets out plans to publish a series of ‘trackers’ to monitor annually the impact of policies to tackle social mobility. These indicators will include:
Category: Reports -
20/05/2012
Children’s watchdog queries Wales poverty target
The watchdog for children’s rights in Wales has said it is unlikely child poverty will be eradicated in the country by the official 2020 target.
Keith Towler, the Children’s Commissioner for Wales, told a BBC television programme he welcomes the Welsh Government’s aspirations but he called for more honesty from politicians. He said: ‘I think that if they continue to say it – eradicating child poverty by 2020 – they will just cheese people off.’
Towler also questioned whether politicians really understand what people living in poverty are going through.
Source: BBC report, 20 May 2012
Link: BBC report
Category: News stories -
16/05/2012
Scottish MSPs back Bill to lessen welfare reform impact
A committee of MSPs has backed a Bill designed to limit the impact of the UK government’s welfare reforms on poor and vulnerable groups in Scotland.
The Scottish Parliament’s Welfare Reform Committee issued a report after examining a Bill proposed by the Scottish Government. The committee convener Michael McMahon MSP said:
‘We heard from witnesses about the bleak picture for those on welfare and the scale of personal impact that is likely to follow the UK reforms. We have grave concerns for the future of Scotland’s most vulnerable people. This comes at a time when the Scottish welfare budget is being cut by £2.5 billion. Seeking to limit even some of the negative impacts of reforms is therefore no mean feat.’
Some of the emerging themes in evidence were:
Category: Reports -
10/05/2012
‘Deprivation is not destiny’ declares Education Secretary
The Secretary of State for Education has said he rejects the argument that pupil achievement is overwhelmingly dictated by socio-economic factors – or that schools are powerless to help children succeed if they were born into poverty, disability, or disadvantage.
Michael Gove, in a speech at a leading private school, began by saying he finds it ‘remarkable’ how many positions of wealth, influence, celebrity and power are held by people who were privately educated. He said:
Category: News stories -
09/05/2012
Iain Duncan Smith calls for ‘cultural change’ to cut welfare bill
Britain needs a ‘cultural change’ if it is going to cut spending on benefits, according to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. Simply ‘cheese slicing’ the budget will not be enough, and he accused previous governments of simply ‘patching up’ a fundamentally broken system.
Iain Duncan Smith made the comments in a speech to a right-wing think tank, Policy Exchange, in London. He said he wants to see ‘internal and external cultural change’ in the coming years, not just ‘political and technocratic’ welfare reform. He continued:
‘By this I mean cultural change both within society, and within government itself. We are faced with a fundamental challenge. Millions of people stuck on out of work benefits. Millions not saving nearly enough for their retirement. And government addicted to spending levels as a measurement of success, rather than life change as a measurement of success.’
Category: News stories -
01/05/2012
Poverty tsar in attack on Prime Minister
The government’s anti-poverty ‘tsar’ has accused the Prime Minister of ignoring a study into how to break the cycle of deprivation. Frank Field MP told the Daily Mail that David Cameron has squandered two years by failing to implement any of his suggestions. He is quoted as saying:
‘I am puzzled as to why the Prime Minister would be so anxious for me to do all this work when he has yet to show that he has read it. This report was about giving the Prime Minister a flagship policy which would have taken politics into a new era. He needs to get on with it.’
In December 2010 a government-commissioned review of poverty and life chances (led by Frank Field) proposed the establishment of the ‘Foundation Years’ – a programme designed to improve the life chances of poor children by improving the quality of the early parenting that they received.
Source: Interview with Frank Field in the Daily Mail, 1 May 2012
Category: News stories
