Tuesday briefing: What needs to be done to tackle child poverty in the UK | UK news
The years of austerity cast a long shadow over Britain. In the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, a program of cuts overseen by then-chancellor George Osborne and Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith destroyed parts of the welfare state; limited the generosity that is now universal credit; It introduced a two-child limit for bedroom tax and child benefit. By 2021, an estimated £37bn has been cut each year from welfare spending alone, with cuts also being made to other bodies of government.
The consequences of these decisions are all around us. Nearly four million children in England are classed as living in poverty, according to the latest figures. A study from Oxford University this week found that more than a fifth of the entire “austerity generation” of British children – i.e. children born since 2013 – They were scarred by poverty for at least half of their childhood.
I spoke for today’s newsletter Patrick ButlerThe Guardian’s social policy editor reports on new research and asks whether enough is being done to tackle child poverty in the UK. First, this morning’s headlines.
five big stories
-
southport attack | A damning investigation found Axel Rudakubana was able to carry out the Southport atrocity because of the “catastrophic” failures of multiple institutions and the “irresponsible and harmful” role of his parents.
-
Middle East crisis | US blockade of ships using Iranian ports in the Gulf begins Monday evening turned the six-week conflict between the US-Israeli coalition and Iran into a test of economic endurance.
-
Health | Metabolic liver disease (MASLD) due to rising obesity and blood sugar levels will affect 1.8 billion people worldwide by 2050, according to a new report. There are currently 1.3 billion people living with MASLD worldwide; that’s a 143% increase in just three decades.
-
Scotland | A funding deal to raise £100 million from private investors for urgently needed nature restoration in Scotland collapsed without notifying the Scottish parliament, the Guardian has learned.
-
XL bully ban | Police spending on kennels and vet bills in England and Wales has more than tripled since the XL bully ban came into force; some powers have seen spending increases of almost 500% since 2024.
In depth: ‘In a spreadsheet, interruptions can seem like a win. But it was a disaster’
Dickensian levels of poverty have returned once again in the UK, and austerity is, according to many experts, the main cause. British children growing up during this period were shorter than their European counterparts, and poorer parts of the country saw a resurgence of Victorian diseases such as rickets and scurvy. On average, the scheme cost Britons around six months of life expectancy. According to a study.
On Monday, a study Research by Oxford University researchers has provided a new perspective on the nature of childhood poverty in Britain. It found there was a huge increase in the proportion of children born after 2013 who spent at least six of the first 11 years of their lives struggling following austerity cuts. Poverty became a defining factor in this group’s formative years, says Patrick Butler, often leading to disastrous consequences.
“When a child grows up in poverty, it harms his or her development,” Patrick tells me. “We know that the longer a child is in poverty, the more damage it causes. And by damage, we’re talking about their health, we’re talking about their ability to get an education, we’re talking about their chances of getting a job and earning money. We know that by all of those measures, poverty is kind of a negative factor.”
Long-term poverty is now a reality for almost a quarter of British children; Under New Labour, this rate was between 13 and 14%.
A clear causal relationship
Austerity has cost many low-income families thousands of pounds from their household budgets. A freeze on benefit rates, a two-child benefit cap and a bedroom tax were accompanied by further cuts to local government and health; This makes it difficult to establish a definitive causal relationship between specific policies and outcomes at the time, explains Patrick.
But the overall impact of austerity has had a clear impact on the current state of the country. Relative poverty in the UK – Defined as a household whose income is less than 60% of the median income – While it has plateaued at around 21 percent in recent years, he says there is growing evidence that the poorest families are getting poorer. Research by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation in January found that nearly 6.8 million people were in deep poverty, the highest level since records began.
“We’re talking about really severe poverty where children probably don’t get enough to eat, their parents struggle to feed them or clothe them properly. When people talk about Dickens’ poverty levels, that’s what we’re talking about. Material poverty is a different factor in modern poverty,” says Patrick.
‘They made a start’
Since Labor returned to power, the government has introduced a number of measures to eradicate childhood poverty in the UK. This month, the two-child limit on child benefit was removed, providing immediate support to some poor households. Nearly half a million children We will be free from poverty with this measure by the end of this decade. Universal credit has also been increased above inflation.
But Patrick says they can go further, noting that some austerity-era policies are still in effect. “They’ve made a start. You could argue they’re a bit late on this. Parts of the Labor government have resisted removing the two-child limit. The benefit cap and bedroom tax are still there, although they have relatively minor effects. So there’s still more to be done.”
Anxious expression
British public attitudes towards the poorest sections of society have softened since austerity. Rhetoric on the subject tends to focus on so-called “shirkers” and “welfare kings and queens,” but Patrick says the framing rarely reflects reality because most parents receiving government support are already working.
Higher levels of poverty often lead to greater social costs, he says; This is something that is not taken into account by the architects of austerity. “On the spreadsheet the cuts may look like a gain. But on the other side of the ledger it’s a disaster. You’ve seen more children in care, foster care or children’s homes. Poor health has consequences for the NHS, while greater inequality is a problem in itself. That’s what was so striking about this research: it was a very useful reminder of how damaging austerity is.”
What else did we read?
-
In the spirit of today’s newsletter, I thought: Ken Loach This interview about his film I, Daniel Blake (pictured above) for the series How We made was amazing. Loach showed how normalized some of the worst parts of austerity have become. Poppy Noor, deputy editor, newsletters
-
Julian Borger’s interview with Italian human rights lawyer Francesca Albanese A must-read work. They discuss his new book and what it’s like to be the target of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Patrick
-
I loved ours. spring photo gallery – here is a rather foreboding image of the US president, full of color and movement, contrasted with Zohran Mamdani, one of New York’s mayors, below. Oh, and there are also cute photos of kids soaping up in Myanmar at last! Poppy
-
Rachel Leingang has an entertaining read on her rise raspberry Danish latte and how it became a viral drink. Patrick
-
And finally, please enjoy the list I never knew I needed: From Bollywood classics to wonderfully crazy chocolates, this Asah Bhosle’s best recordsOne of India’s greatest vocalists.
Sport
Cricket | James Anderson turned back the years with a superb tackle to beat Lancashire and secure a surprise win over Derbyshire the other day. Anderson, now 43 and two seasons on from retiring as England’s record test wicket-taker, scored four goals in 18 overs to lead the Red Rose to a 20-run win at Emirates Old Trafford.
Football | Ghanaian winger Dominic Frimpong (20 years old) was killed in an armed robbery attack on his team’s bus while returning from a match on Sunday, the Ghana Football Association said.
Olympics | Some Angelenos seeking presale tickets for the 2028 Games were shocked by exorbitant prices and unexpected service fees. LA28 has opened a number of slots in its presale ticket raffle for residents of Southern California and Oklahoma City, which will host the canoe slalom and softball events. Ticket prices ranged from $28 to thousands of dollars.
front pages
Guard “‘Catastrophic’ state failures led to Southport attack, investigation finds.” Mail “Southport killer’s family ‘should have stopped him’,” he said. Sun It follows the same story as “They didn’t have to die”, whereas Mirror “This struggle does not end today,” he said.
Telegram “Trump repents of Jesus show,” he reports. Times It continues with “Trump is rolling the dice to blockade the Strait.” Finance Times “Former NATO chief Robertson slams Starmer’s ‘indifference’,” he says. Finally I “UK passengers abandoned at EU airports due to chaotic new Brexit checks”.
In Focus Today
Forty years later, Lebanon and Israel finally spoke
With the United States and Iran deadlocked, could historic talks between Lebanon and Israel help move the Middle East toward peace? William Christou reports.
Cartoon of the day | Ben Jennings
positive side
A bit of good news to remind you that the world isn’t that bad
When was the last time you did a puzzle? For Rachel Hosie (pictured above), it had been more than 20 years since she opened the puzzle box. Then, one rainy day, he came across a 1000-piece illustration by Agatha Christie at work and became, in his own words, obsessed with The Only Change That Worked.
His new hobby helped him cope with several major changes that occurred in rapid succession (marriage, quitting his job, and moving abroad) and turned out to be literally “the missing piece of my life.”
“Every time I successfully place a piece,” Hosie says, “I get a little rush and feel a sense of accomplishment. It’s a dopamine hit, but I worked for it instead of going from Instagram reel to Instagram reel.”
Sign up here for a weekly digest of The Upside delivered to you every Sunday
Bored at work?
And finally, Guardian’s puzzles are here to keep you entertained all day long. Until tomorrow.
