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21/08/2003
Children in poverty need extra £5 per week, says charity
The government will "almost certainly" miss its first target for reducing child poverty unless tax credits for children are increased from next April, the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) claimed today.
Launching its campaign, 'Make it a fiver Gordon!', the CPAG is calling on the Chancellor Gordon Brown to give an extra £5 a week for each child living in low-income families from next April.
The government has set itself a target to reduce the number of children living in poverty by a quarter (from 1999's figure of 4.2 million children) by the end of 2004/05. There will need to be fewer than 3.1 million children in poverty in 2004/05 to meet the target. Children are defined as being in poverty if the household income is below 60% of median incomes, after allowing for expenditure on housing costs.
Forecasts by the Institute for Fiscal Studies suggest that an increase of between £3 and £5 a week in the new child tax credit (above planned uprating in line with average earnings) may be needed to ensure the target is met, the CPAG say.
In its Green Budget 2003, published in January 2003, the IFS estimated that the increase of £5 a week in the per-child element of the child tax credit would cost around £1.7 billion a year.
Martin Barnes, Director of the Child Poverty Action Group, said: "The Chancellor said in the budget that he wanted to make faster progress in tackling child poverty, but without a significant increase in the child tax credit the first milestone target for reducing child poverty will almost certainly be missed.
"Significant increases in financial support for children have been made but more needs to be done if the ambitious targets to lift children out of poverty are to be achieved."
(gmcg)
Launching its campaign, 'Make it a fiver Gordon!', the CPAG is calling on the Chancellor Gordon Brown to give an extra £5 a week for each child living in low-income families from next April.
The government has set itself a target to reduce the number of children living in poverty by a quarter (from 1999's figure of 4.2 million children) by the end of 2004/05. There will need to be fewer than 3.1 million children in poverty in 2004/05 to meet the target. Children are defined as being in poverty if the household income is below 60% of median incomes, after allowing for expenditure on housing costs.
Forecasts by the Institute for Fiscal Studies suggest that an increase of between £3 and £5 a week in the new child tax credit (above planned uprating in line with average earnings) may be needed to ensure the target is met, the CPAG say.
In its Green Budget 2003, published in January 2003, the IFS estimated that the increase of £5 a week in the per-child element of the child tax credit would cost around £1.7 billion a year.
Martin Barnes, Director of the Child Poverty Action Group, said: "The Chancellor said in the budget that he wanted to make faster progress in tackling child poverty, but without a significant increase in the child tax credit the first milestone target for reducing child poverty will almost certainly be missed.
"Significant increases in financial support for children have been made but more needs to be done if the ambitious targets to lift children out of poverty are to be achieved."
(gmcg)
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More than a million children affected by 'severe poverty'
Nearly 1.3 million children are living in severe poverty in the UK, a report by Save the Children has revealed. The charity said that around one in ten children in the UK are now living in families where the income is so low that children are living without essentials like a proper diet or heating in the home.
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Nearly 1.3 million children are living in severe poverty in the UK, a report by Save the Children has revealed. The charity said that around one in ten children in the UK are now living in families where the income is so low that children are living without essentials like a proper diet or heating in the home.
01 December 2003
£1bn needed to ensure child poverty goal is met
Around £1 billion more might need to be spent for the government to meet its target to reduce child poverty to 3.1 million by 2004-05, according to a leading think-tank.
£1bn needed to ensure child poverty goal is met
Around £1 billion more might need to be spent for the government to meet its target to reduce child poverty to 3.1 million by 2004-05, according to a leading think-tank.
28 January 2009
Consultation To End Child Poverty, Launched
The Government has today set out plans to make sure every child gets the best start in life by tackling child poverty, which can unfairly hold children back and prevent them reaching their full potential.
Consultation To End Child Poverty, Launched
The Government has today set out plans to make sure every child gets the best start in life by tackling child poverty, which can unfairly hold children back and prevent them reaching their full potential.
14 June 2012
2% Fall In Child Poverty Figures
New official figures have revealed that the number of children living in poverty in the UK fell by 300,000 last year. Figures for 2010/11, show that 2.3 million children (18%) lived in households classed as below the poverty line, a 2% decrease on the previous year. The numbers are based on median incomes, which also went down in the same period.
2% Fall In Child Poverty Figures
New official figures have revealed that the number of children living in poverty in the UK fell by 300,000 last year. Figures for 2010/11, show that 2.3 million children (18%) lived in households classed as below the poverty line, a 2% decrease on the previous year. The numbers are based on median incomes, which also went down in the same period.
09 March 2006
Government misses child poverty target
The government has failed to meet its first target in the bid to tackle child poverty. In 1999, Prime Minister Tony Blair pledged to eliminate poverty among British children by 2020. The first target towards achieving this goal was to reduce the number of children affected by poverty from 4.1 million to 3.1 million by April 2005.
Government misses child poverty target
The government has failed to meet its first target in the bid to tackle child poverty. In 1999, Prime Minister Tony Blair pledged to eliminate poverty among British children by 2020. The first target towards achieving this goal was to reduce the number of children affected by poverty from 4.1 million to 3.1 million by April 2005.
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