Three million UK children living below poverty line: study

It's a disgrace but not surprising. 14 years of Tory austerity and funnelling of wealth to the rich has recreated the Dickensian era. The UK has had the lowest top personal tax rate and lowest overall tax receipts as a proportion of GDP among leading European countries since 2000 and that strategy has totally failed to produce increases in productivity or growth. Labour room for manoeuvre is limited by the main beneficiaries of Tory largesse.

I remember reading an article recently about scurvy (malnutrition to the point where teeth fall out) is growing among kids in the U.K.

I love the U.K and visit as often as I can, but the poverty there is always appalling. The inequalities Dickens described is as real today as it was back then.

A national disgrace. People need to be able to apply for additional benefits. I still have family living in London but I could no longer afford to live there.

Tories (spend 14 years screwing anyone in the UK who isn't rich or connected)

UK: (falls into disrepair, food banks increase)

Labour (gets into power in a landslide, with a mandate to undo the damage)

Less than a few months later:

Media: "LaBOur MuST Do SOmetHIng aBOuT tHIs!"

Labour sometimes need to be reminded who and what this party was founded to represent. A large majority can allow them to ignore their left wing in this case.

Get your arse into gear on this disgrace. Yes, the Tories left a hell of a mess behind them but this is very high priority.

Immediate program of free meals at schools breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Available for poverty children and children who can pay.

Expect this to get worse with the likes of Starmer and Rayner in power.

David Brent

Expect this to get worse with the likes of Starmer and Rayner in power.

Created by 14 years of Tory slaughter.

Harsh reality is that the poverty -stricken often spend more on their weekly food than the wealthy,due to consuming processed food,ready meals,or fast food.

The social trends that have created this are the breakup of the traditional family and the large number of inactive people claiming an inability to work due to mental health issues. Overakk tax take has risen inexcerably over the past 20 years to pay for the NHS and Welfare costs, with pressures amplified by a rapidly growing population. The top tax of rate on incomes over £125,000 ($160,000) is 47%, is in line with the rest of europe, but tax rates on lower earners ar emuch lower than in the rets of Europe, with 53% of the population net recipients of state aid. The minimum wage of £11.44 an hour (Y,2,222) has consistently been raised over the past 14 years. If the Conservative Government can be critizised for adopting socialist policies that have created a benefit dependent society, more socialism is not the solution. There needs to be a hard push to get people back to work and manage immigration better to reduce the pressure on public services.

Expect this to get worse with the likes of Starmer and Rayner in power.

I agree that this is likely. They've inherited a mess but seem unwilling to do anything about it.

No-one in Japan, which has a far larger national debt and deficit than the UK, talks about "fiscal rules" or "the nation's credit card being maxxed out" and other such frankly idiotic sentiments. Instead, people urge the government to do more. I suspect its because Japan has no Murdoch press. It has poisoned people into cheering tax cuts that only help the rich, accepting very poor service from private rail companies, water companies, energy companies etc. and cuts to public services that hit everybody.

and manage immigration better

Agreed. Can't say this though, as it makes you racist and anti-Muslim in the face of the woke brigade.

Children are the joy of their parents, their siblings, relatives, teachers, and friends. They are the present and the future of their countries and proud citizens of Planet Earth.

Hunger, child labor, malnutrition, poverty, diseases, illiteracy, and such other evils cannot be allowed in civilized societies in the 21st century. A G7 and a NATO member like the UK need to wake up and wage a war against hunger in the UK and across the countries of the Common Wealth.

Food banks are being used by those above the poverty line but still struggling to pay the bills. Increased demand and fewer donations.

I was watching an economist point out that many claims by all sides as to why food has become so expensive are all only a tiny part of the problem.

He was pointing to a more diversity problem.

Yes a play on the words.

He basically point out that prices started to rise faster when more diverse and types of foods became available.

Basically, anyone over 50 knows that as a child in places like the UK, Canada USA , we had limited choices of foods maybe 2 or 3 types of tomatoes mostly late summer and fall, same for potatoes, in the winter, bread cereal, fruits etc...and this meant people bought more if a single crop or product.

Today in these countries you have 5, 6 ,7 8... different types of tomatoes, potatoes, in winter a load of fruits imported from around the world...50 varieties of morning cereal, etc...

So instead of producing one large crop or one type of tomatoes or potatoes and selling out everything, now we produce 8 kinds in smaller amounts all requiring a different method or process.

50 morning cereals instead of 10 means less of each 50 production lines, packaging etc....

High food loss/waste, cost of production etc ...

So we get all sorts of variety but we pay higher prices because of it.

As a teen the idea of having baby spinach salad in the winter was insane if you could even find it, cabbage, leek maybe a head of lettuce potatoes carrots, turnip, apples, yes but forget orages, strawberries etc...

But today everything is year round and to maintain that high variety of products means waste and that means higher prices all around.

Labour (gets into power in a landslide, with a mandate to undo the damage)

They created this damage in the first place, and there is no way they can undo this...unless they fig out a reverse immigration formula..

Maybe the measure of "poverty" is false. Basic foods from a basic food shop are still relatively cheap. Even someone on benefits should be able to survive. Not a great lifestyle but benefits are not supposed to be luxury living.

Quick, somebody talk about bad bad China to change the subject

And yet, Keir Starmer thinks Israel is of the highest priority.

Reminds me of Lindsay Graham, who, when asked about hurricane victims, went on a rant about how Israel was of the highest priority. Money (from AIPAC) will make politicians say anything, no matter how depraved.

quote: one of the richest countries in the world.

Nope. And certainly not after Brexit. Although we are good at keeping up appearances.

Brexit took Sterling down 25% at a stroke, removing 25% of the value of every personal asset and all savings in the UK, as goods and resources are priced globally in USD.

That sort of damage is comparable to losing a war. Whilst rich people won't notice, a substantial strata of British society was economically relegated. As that filters through, poverty will spike to a 'new normal'.

The UK is now a much poorer country than it was, and only has itself to blame.

The idea of 'rich nations' is rather fake. For starters, most 'rich' countries have a lot of poor or destitute citizens.

You could exclude from being 'rich', all nations with a national debt, rather than a national surplus. That would make the US and Japan both very poor - the US because of its huge national debt, Japan because of the size of the debt as a percentage of GDP. For all their apparent wealth, most countries are wallowing in insane amounts of debt.

You could exclude a percentage of the richest and poorest and consider the average asset value of the majority against the cost of living. Or just count the impoverished against the cost of living as a percentage.

Asset value rather than savings because some nations largely rent, some have mortgages (only the part of the mortgage that they have paid off is an asset).

More than 11 million Britons have less than £1000 in savings. A quarter of UK adults have savings of less than £100. About 17% of Britons have no savings at all. How 'rich' is that given the cost of living in the UK?

An article of 2022 had single Japanese people having an average of $53k in savings, but 23% had no savings at all.

It's easier to define 'poor countries': mortality due to poverty/malnutrition, those without access to medical care, clean water or food. But even in the poorest countries, the corrupt despots that run them and their cronies always seem to have a lot of cash stashed away.

British people have traditionally had much less disposable income than those in other G7 countries (in part due to their preference for buying rather than renting). Post-Brexit, with Sterling relegated, they are going to have to come to terms with fewer public services and less support. Side hustles for everyone and more of the reliance on foodbanks and other forms of Victorian-style charity.

quote: Labour (gets into power in a landslide.

No. The voters were voting the Tories out, not Labour in. Subtle but important difference. And Labour needed to keep their snouts out of the trough for longer because of that.

76% of the children are from ethnic minorities. Pakistani children 58%. Blacks 51%. Asian children 47%. White children 24%,

The UN/UNICEF in all its many political contortions has lost all creditability.

An organisation that is proven to be unfit for purpose.

These UNICEF reports and studies are based on a defined politically motivated agenda.

Data contortions to further a clear distinct pattern of wealth redistribution masquerading as a crusade to end child poverty.

The report from The Trussell Trust is highly misleading, a gross distortion, I would contend duplicitous narrative of misinterpretation.

The reports, I have posted below, The Trussell Trust is in fact a reimaging of UK Poverty 2024 Joseph Rowntree Foundation published 23 January 2024.

Both are heavily reliant on modelling/surveys/estimation/political interpretation/unsound projection/outright conjecture….

Both reports “fine print” the surveys were based on samples of 2077 adults on line.

Also quote… The group in very deep poverty includes people whose equivalised household income after housing costs (AHC) is less than 40% of median AHC income. The group in deep poverty, but not very deep poverty, have an equivalised AHC household income less than 50% but more than 40% of median AHC income.

The group in poverty, but not deep poverty, have an equivalised AHC household income less than 60% but more than 50% of median AHC income

The poverty gap is the difference between the median equivalised income of people in poverty and the relevant poverty line, as a percentage of the poverty line in each year. The deep poverty gap and very deep poverty gap are calculated using figures for 50% and 40% of the median household income respectively.

This is manipulation to fashion a desired result.  

Look, social injustices need to be free of political interference, the nature of inequality clearly researched and defined.

Both the last Conversative government, worse still this unholy pretence of Kier Starmer’s, “labour” party once devoted to working class devoted social justice is a ghastly betrayal.        

UK Poverty 2024 Joseph Rowntree Foundation published 23 January 2024

https://www.jrf.org.uk/uk-poverty-2024-the-essential-guide-to-understanding-poverty-in-the-uk

The Cost of Hunger and Hardship

https://trusselltrustprod.prod.acquia-sites.com/sites/default/files/2024-10/Cost%20of%20hunger%20and%20hardship_Interim%20report%202024_4.pdf