“My Government will enshrine in law its commitment to eradicate child poverty by 2020.”
The Government has already demonstrated its commitment to tackling child poverty when we made our historic commitment to eradicate child poverty in a generation.
This legislation will enshrine in law the commitment to eradicate child poverty by 2020 and help to ensure that we stay on course and take action now to tackle the causes as well as the consequences of poverty.
That children still live in poverty in this country today is unacceptable. Ending child poverty is one of the biggest challenges we face and one that we must all take responsibility for tackling.
The Government has made substantial progress in halting and reversing the rising trend of child poverty, with 600,000 children lifted out of relative income poverty since 1998/99. But there is a long way to go.
Eradicating child poverty requires a renewed approach that makes sustainable progress in improving children’s life chances for the longer term.
This Bill will drive action across government and with our delivery partners and give our commitment a new impetus.
The purpose of the Bill is:
To give new impetus to Government’s commitment and to ensure a focus across government on ending child poverty for the long term.
Related documents:
· In the Pre-Budget Report the Government committed to launching a consultation asking stakeholders how legislation can best reflect its long-term ambition to eradicate child poverty. The consultation document will be published in the new year:
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/ending_child_poverty.htm (Treasury website, opens in new browser window)
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