Poverty forecast

'Striking' consistency is found in the things that different groups of people perceive to be the 'necessities of life' in the UK today, according to a new study. The working paper – part of the Poverty and Social Exclusion in the UK project – used focus groups to examine people's perceptions of poverty, social exclusion and living standards.

Welfare services help to reduce inequality and poverty in European countries, according to a new study. But they are not as effective as cash benefits.

Researchers examined the impact of welfare services, such as education and healthcare, on inequality and poverty in 21 EU countries, by reference to a hypothetical situation in which no publicly provided services existed.

The Europe 2020 project has so far failed to promote coherent anti-poverty strategies, campaigners say. And the UK is ranked below the average on its approach to most poverty and social exclusion issues.

The European Anti-Poverty Network has looked at all the available reports submitted by member countries on progress towards the Europe 2020 goals (to reduce poverty and/or social exclusion by at least 20 million by 2020). They then rank countries on issues such as the effectiveness of policies to tackle child poverty, and measures to ensure an adequate minimum income and social protection.

There is little evidence to support the idea of a growing ‘culture of dependency’, according to a study of the causes of poverty. The evidence instead highlights the important role for policy – especially on family-related benefits, work incentives and job creation.

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation study looks at what causes poverty, and tries to separate out the roles of factors such as family, employment, geography, education and culture.