This week, the Universal Credit (Removal of Two Child Limit) Bill returned to Parliament.
The Bill is part of our child poverty strategy and would remove the two-child benefit cap, lifting around half a million children out of poverty. This measure will see the largest reduction in child poverty by any Government in a single parliament.
I’m proud that we are bringing forward measures to eradicate child poverty in this country. It is a national disgrace that any child should go to bed hungry, cold, or without the essentials they need.
However, this must be only the first step among many to tackle poverty across the board. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation found that a record number of people in the UK are living in ‘very deep poverty’. This means that their annual household incomes fail to cover the cost of food, energy bills, and clothing. No one should have to choose between heating their home and feeding their family. Meanwhile, 3,000 billionaires control $18.3 trillion globally – this stark inequality is unfathomable.
These figures need to be a call to action. This is not a world we have to accept, this is one we can change, bit by bit, measure by measure.
We also should get our welfare bill down, by helping people, who can, get back into work. I’ve secured £90,000 for employment social prescribers in Stroud, helping people get back to work instead of leaving them isolated, stuck on long-term sick.
However, we need fairness within our tax system. Everyone must pay their fair share, and no one should fall through the safety net into poverty.
