Urban poverty scars British cities as worst rates of child poverty revealed
The constituencies with the worst rates of child poverty in Britain are revealed.
Wednesday 17 January 2007
Manchester Central, Liverpool Riverside and Poplar and Canning Town top the list of the 10 constituencies with the worst rates of child poverty in Britain.
In these three constituencies about half of children are living in poverty, which is double the national average.
In the week when the UN revealed that more than half of the world's population live in cities, these new figures show that British cities - Manchester, Liverpool, Glasgow, London and Birmingham - have by far the worst rates of child poverty in the country.
Colette Marshall, UK Director of Save the Children said: "Despite the boom in affluence, illustrated by ever-rising house prices, these figures show that cities remain the places most scarred by poverty. Families are struggling to cope - especially during winter when the weather turns cold and the bills are high and the financial demands on families become unbearable. Without urgent action this year the Government will fail to meet its own target to end child poverty by 2020."
In both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown's constituencies just under a quarter of children are living in poverty (the national average). The Cabinet Minister with the worst rate of child poverty in their constituency is Hilary Benn MP (Leeds Central).
Louise Ellman, MP For Liverpool, Riverside said: "700,000 children have been lifted out of relative poverty since 1997 but it is clear that much more needs to be done. We must expand opportunities for education and training and ensure families and children do not fall below the breadline. The government must keep their commitment to eradicating child poverty by 2020."
All three major political parties have now signed up to the target of eradicating child poverty by 2020 but these figures reveal the extent of the problem in Britain's biggest cities. The Government now needs to turn their promises and rhetoric into reality and use the vital opportunities of 2007, the Budget and Comprehensive Spending Review, to change the lives of the poorest children in Britain.
Save the Children is calling on the Government to introduce Seasonal Grants to help families at the most difficult times of year. These grants alone would lift 440,000 children out of poverty.
Top ten rates of child poverty (constituencies, % of children living in poverty (mp, party)
- Manchester, Central 54.3% (Tony Lloyd, Lab)
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Liverpool, Riverside 49.7% (Louise Ellman, Lab)
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Poplar and Canning Town 48.6% (Jim Fitzpatrick, Lab)
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Glasgow North East 48.4% (Michael Martin, Speaker)
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Tottenham 48.0% (David Lammy, Lab)
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Hackney South and Shoreditch 47.5% (Meg Hillier, Lab)
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Islington South and Finsbury 47.1% (Emily Thornberry, Lab)
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Bethnal Green and Bow 46.3% (George Galloway, Respect)
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Regent's Park and Kensington North 45.2% (Karen Buck, Lab)
- Birmingham, Ladywood 44.8% (Clare Short, Ind)
Data on levels of poverty in British constituencies comes from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation
