Campaign reply - The Poverty Gap

Thank you for contacting me about the report "Two Nations: The State of Poverty in the UK".

Tackling poverty and deprivation is a priority for this Government. While I note the concerns raised by the Centre for Social Justice's recent report, I am confident that my colleagues across Government are taking action to support the most vulnerable, ensure work pays, support our communities, and tackle crime.

Work is the best route out of poverty. As the report highlights, the UK has made good progress in reducing unemployment. Q4 2010 and Q4 2023, the UK unemployment rate (aged 16 and over) fell from 7.9 per cent to 3.8 per cent. To ensure that this trend continues, the Back to Work Plan will see the Government invest £2.5 billion into employment-focused support, which will help people to stay healthy, move off benefits, and reap the rewards of work. 

To ensure work pays, in April 2024, the National Living Wage (NLW) will increase by 9.8 per cent from £10.42 to £11.44 an hour, boosting the pay of a full-time worker on the NLW by over £1,800 a year. Additionally, the Government will further cut Class One employee National Insurance contributions (NICs) from ten per cent to eight per cent in April 2024. 

Alongside this, the Government has provided targeted support through Cost of Living Payments, which have been paid to eight million households on eligible means-tested-benefits, eight million pensioner households and six million people on eligible disability benefits. Indeed, to support low-income households with their housing costs, the Government will raise Local Housing Allowance rates to the 30th percentile of local market rents in April 2024. This will benefit 1.6 million low-income households, who will be around £800 a year better off on average in 2024-25.

Finally, the Government has also invested £120 million into the Safer Streets Fund. This money is supporting police forces, local authorities, and eligible community groups across England and Wales prevent violence against women and girls, neighbourhood crime, and anti-social behaviour.

Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.