Two new studies by the Social Metrics Commission and the New Economics Foundation reveal the extent to which David Cameron and Theresa May have wrecked havoc in Britain's wallets.
Figures published today offer the definitive proof that after eight years of Conservative government Britain is now at the brink of a poverty crisis unseen since World War II.
Perhaps the news won’t sound surprising to most, but according to a new report by the Social Metrics Commission (SMC), 14.2 million people in the UK live in poverty. That includes 8.4 million working adults and 4.5 million children.
A similar study produced in 1965 by Child Poverty Action Group founder, Professor Peter Townsend, placed that figure at around 7.5 million.
The Commission has also established a new metric to assess poverty, which accounts for a range of inescapable costs that reduce people’s spending power. This would include things like your mortgage, childcare and all the extra costs you might have if you live with a disability.
Commenting on the new measuring tool, SMC commissioner David Hutchison said:
“What do we mean by living in poverty? Five people living in one room because they can’t afford any more space. Falling behind on household bills with no savings to rely on. Not being able to go out to work because childcare costs are too high. If we are serious about supporting vulnerable people, we need to understand what drives them into poverty and what keeps them there. This new measure is a bold attempt to understand the characteristics of those who face the challenge that their resources fall short of the inescapable costs of daily life. It is a critical step if we are to change the way we tackle poverty in the UK.”
Other staggering SMC findings include how one in eight people in Britain are in persistent poverty. In other words, they’ve been living below the breadline for the last two to three years.
The figures also show that the situation worsens for disabled people, of which nearly half are locked in poverty (6.9 million). Disabled activist groups have long argued that they were the group most affected by Tory austerity, especially after disability benefits such as the Disability Living Allowance were scrapped.
And where SMC points out to the numbers of vulnerable people, other charities’ studies show the cause.
Also today, the New Economics Foundation (NEF) has released its latest study on the effects of austerity in Britain.
One of the opening paragraphs of the report authored by the groups head of economics, Alfie Stirling, and researcher Sarah Arnold, reads:
“The decade of austerity so far has arguably been the worst economic policy error in a generation. As a consequence, living standards have suffered substantially. Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) analysis suggests that the isolated effects of discretionary cuts have suppressed gross domestic product (GDP) by a cumulative 15% between 2010/11 and 2017/18, or £10,000 per household. “
The way the Chancellor Philip Hammond is dealing with the nation’s accounts, however, does nowt foresee a change in tact.
But the consequences to the continues starvation of the British economy could be disastrous, with NEF predicting that services such as prisons and the NHS would be subjected to cuts of up to 4.1% per capita. That would amount to millions of pounds fewer doctors, firefighters and police officers.
NEF suggests that, according to the Officer for Budget Responsibility’s own data, “the government should increase annual borrowing to up £24.1 billion” and to expand progressive taxation. The money should then be invested in Britain’s welfare state.
The authors also left the ominous warning to Hammond:
“We find that unless the government changes course, the chancellor’s recent claim that there is “light at the end of the tunnel” will amount to hollow rhetoric. “
Charities, think tanks and independent commissions are in agreement over the desperate situation the country finds itself in. It remains to be seen if either Westminster or the electorate has the will to change the situation.
Joana Ramiro is a reporter for Left Foot Forward. You can follow her on Twitter for all sorts of rants here.
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