Government ministers put on the spot by children over disgrace of child poverty
Over 100 children and young people will hold Government ministers to task on child poverty in the UK.
Wednesday 14 February 2007
On Wednesday 21st February, over 100 children and young people will be holding Government ministers to task on the issue of child poverty in the UK and what the Government is doing to tackle the problem.
Media are invited to attend the event at Save the Children, 1 St John's Lane, London EC1M 4AR.
The event and workshops will be from 10am to 4pm.
John Hutton will address the young people at 10.45am.
Stephen Timms will present his budgeting activity at 1.45pm.
If you would like to attend the event please contact Sophie Elmhirst on 020 7012 6403
John Hutton, Secretary of State for the Department of Work and Pensions which delivers the Government's policy on child poverty, will speak about what child poverty means to him and will be challenged by the young people on what the Government is doing to meet its target of eradicating child poverty by 2020. Stephen Timms, Chief Secretary to the Treasury and the minister who decides Government spending for the next 3 years, will be asked to show how he would balance his budget if he were living on £179 per week - the amount a family of two parents and two children live on in severe poverty.
The young people attending the workshop, held at Save the Children's London offices, come from a wide range of youth organisations. They will be leading a range of activities throughout the day including discussions with David Laws MP (Lib Dem) and Philip Hammond MP (Con).
Andy Woods, aged 17, said: "It is about time that people found out that poverty does happen in the UK and not only overseas and this is a brilliant opportunity for young people to explore the issue and raise people's awareness."
Kate Turner, Youth Campaigns Manager at Save the Children, said: "It is vital to get the young people's voices heard on the issue of child poverty in the UK. We want the politicians to listen and take note of what they have to say. This is the next generation talking - when they're adults, child poverty should no longer exist if the Government keeps its promises."
The young people will also discuss what the Government can do to get the target back on track to end child poverty. Save the Children is calling for the Government to introduce two Seasonal Grants to support families at the points of year when they are facing acute financial pressure. These grants alone could lift 440,000 children out of poverty. An additional £4bn (0.3% of GDP) is needed to ensure that the next milestone towards the child poverty target is met in 2010.
