Britain is 'still far from being a fair and just society', says think tank

Britain is still far from being a fair and just society and the last decade has seen more wealth concentrated in the hands of Britain's wealthiest people, according to a leading think-tank.

In its audit of social injustice in Britain over the past decade, the Institute for Public Policy Research (ippr) found that women continued to be more likely to live in poverty, while the percentage of wealth held by the wealthiest 10% of the population had increased from 47% to 54%.

Today's publication forms the first part of ippr's work on 'Rethinking Social Justice', a project which assesses how Britain has changed since the Labour Party set up its Commission on Social Justice in 1994, and sets out new policy directions for the decade ahead.

The study also found that social class and ethnicity still heavily influences opportunities for people in their work and private life. Democratic participation is also falling and political influence is polarising according to class and wealth, the report said.

However, the report says that overall Britain has become fairer in the last 10 years, with increased employment rates and the commitment to reducing child poverty having so far been successful. The nation is healthier, living longer and experiencing far less crime than a decade ago, the think tank concluded.

ippr Director, Nick Pearce, said: "Despite the boldness of its pledge to eradicate child poverty and the expansion of investment in public services, the government does not consistently articulate and publicly advocate a fairer, more equal Britain. It has often achieved social justice objectives by stealth. It should now try and do the same for fairness and equality as it has done for public services and shift the terms of political debate."

To push forward the social justice, Mr Pearce said the government needed to create a progressive public debate to "explain, justify and secure support for social justice".

(gmcg)