The “invisibility” of poverty in Japanese society has long been one of the reasons for...
Poverty forecast
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07/06/2012
UK poverty rate still above EU average, despite fall under Labour
Nearly 11 million people were at risk of poverty in the UK in 2010 – higher than the EU average – according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The ONS compared the UK at-risk-of-poverty rate with that in other EU countries over the period 2005–2010, using data from European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions. The EU ‘at-risk-of-poverty’ rate is the proportion of people with an equivalised disposable income (after social transfers) below 60 per cent of the national median.
Category: Reports -
05/06/2012
‘Missing links’ between employment and poverty trends in EU
Researchers in Antwerp have examined the ‘missing links’ between employment policy and inclusion policy in the European Union. They point to the continuing need for a complementary approach to social transfers and labour market inclusion.
Although overall at-risk-of-poverty rates in the EU showed disappointingly little improvement during the economic upswing (2004–2008), this coincided with a convergence between national rates among people aged between 20 and 59. The researchers suggest four factors were at work:
Category: Reports -
31/05/2012
Negative portrayal of people in poverty by British newspapers
People in poverty and those receiving benefits are depicted negatively in British newspapers compared with newspapers in Denmark and Sweden, according to new research.
Researchers at Aalborg University in Denmark examined stories in a sample of 1,750 newspapers from each country over the period 2004–2009.
Category: Reports -
21/05/2012
In-work poverty and workplace democracy – inquiry launched
A think-tank inquiry has been launched into alternative solutions to reduce in-work poverty.
The Smith Institute inquiry builds on an earlier project, which concluded that the most progress in tackling in-work poverty was made in the period of post-war consensus (1945–1979). This period combined:
Category: News stories -
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 -
11/05/2012
Minimum wages across Europe fall short of poverty thresholds
A new academic paper has looked at the role of minimum wages, tax and benefit policies in protecting workers against financial poverty in 21 European countries with a national minimum wage, together with three states in the USA.
Category: Reports -
10/05/2012
Public service cuts ‘will create forgotten Britain’
A charity chief has warned of hardening public attitudes to people in poverty, resulting in an increasing divide between the ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’. He said plans to cut billions from public services risk creating a ‘forgotten Britain’ where the plight of ‘whole swathes of society is getting worse but is invisible to the rest of us’.
Sir Stephen Bubb, head of the Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations, made his comments in a speech in London.
Category: News stories -
02/05/2012
Poverty and social exclusion in Northern Ireland since 2009
A new study has examined how poverty and social exclusion in Northern Ireland have changed since 2009.
Researchers for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation found:
Category: Reports -
30/04/2012
UK progress on inclusive economic growth
The government has published an annual progress report on implementation of the European Union’s strategy for inclusive economic growth – including the target of lifting at least 20 million people out of the risk of poverty and exclusion by 2020. The government says it ‘remains committed to eradicating child poverty, increasing social mobility and ensuring social justice’. It aims to do this by:
Category: Reports -
27/04/2012
Teachers ‘buying food’ for hungry pupils
New research has found that since the start of the economic recession teachers are witnessing increasing numbers of pupils coming into school ‘hungry’, ‘dirty’ and ‘struggling to concentrate’.
The research was based on interviews with 515 secondary school teachers in England, and was released by The Prince’s Trust charity and the Times Educational Supplement.
The survey found that:
Category: News stories
