18 October 2007 – Figures show children and pensioners are better off
Significant progress has been made in tackling poverty and social exclusion in the UK with fewer children and pensioners living in poverty and more people in work, according to figures released today.
The latest cross-government Opportunity for All (OfA) indicators released by the Department for Work and Pensions show:
- 600,000 fewer children living in poverty.
- A fall in the number of children living in homes that do not meet the set standard of decency from 41 per cent to 23 per cent.
- 1.1 million fewer pensioners living in poverty.
- An increase in the employment rates for many disadvantaged groups.
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Peter Hain said:
“Tackling poverty and promoting equality of opportunity for all lie at the heart of the Government’s policy making and vision for the future.
“These figures show that through direct help with the creation of the National Minimum Wage to ensure that work pays, and working family tax credits, we have helped to target money directly to those who need it.
“We believe however that work represents the most sustainable route out of poverty. 2.5 million more people are in work than in 1997 helping them to provide for themselves and their families.
“But there is more to be done. We are committed to helping more adults out of benefits dependency and into work - my green paper ‘In Work, Better Off’ has outlined how we will tailor the support people receive that will enable them to get into work.
"And Initiatives such as Pension Credit have helped target money at those poorest pensioners and, with the Winter Fuel Payment and free TV licences, this is helping more of our senior citizens heat their homes in the winter and spend money on the essentials.”
OfA has presented an annual overview of Government action to tackle poverty and social exclusion since 1999.
Notes to Editors
- This is the ninth annual update on OfA indicators.
- We intend to continue to update the indicators included in this document on the Department for Work and Pensions’ website.
- There are 59 indicators in total, 34 of which show we are moving in the right direction since the first set of indicators since the baseline which for most is 1997. A further seven show a broadly constant trend, six show the data is moving in the wrong direction and for 12 we cannot determine a trend because there is either insufficient data or no trend assessment is possible because the data is not comparable with previous years.
- OfA is available on the DWP website at www.dwp.gov.uk/ofa
DWP Press Office: 0203 267 5144
Out of hours: 07659 108 883
Website: www.dwp.gov.uk