Pre-Budget Report Submission 2005

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November 2005 - Half-way to half-way - investing to deliver the 2010 child poverty target.

One Parent Families shares the Government's passion for and commitment to abolishing child poverty in a generation and we welcome the progress made to date. We are now five years from 2010 - the half-way mark. The final figures for 2004/05 will, we hope, confirm we are on target to have reduced child poverty by a quarter this year. Yet, 48 per cent of children in one-parent families still live in poverty and they make up 42 per cent of all poor children. One Parent Families believes that investment in key policy areas is now essential. And delivery is key. Here, using modelling from Martin Evans' LOIS project at Bath University we highlight the key areas for investment essential to meeting the 2010 child poverty target. These include:

Up-rating tax credits and benefits in line with earnings - this is essential if the poorest are not to fall even further behind.
Making the New Deal for Lone Parents (NDLP) work better, as unsustainable work leaves people in poverty. Decent jobs and retention help low-income families both to get out of and stay out of poverty;
Increasing the National Minimum Wage (NMW) to lift still more families above the poverty line. This can work for the poorest over and above tax credit increases;
Getting the CSA working now to lift more one-parent families out of poverty and help more parents into work. Families getting child maintenance are poor for half as long as those without - but policy must deliver to make this happen.
Funding the Childcare Bill proposals to ensure sufficient high quality and affordable new childcare places are created; and
Investing in child contact services to ensure the most stable and positive outcomes for children in separated families.

Tackling child poverty will need not only commitments in these areas, but for existing policies and programmes to be delivered effectively. Good policies, on tax credits, the reformed CSA and Jobcentre Plus, are failing to have the impact that they should because of failures in delivery. Investing in delivery and ensuring that policies are working on the ground are as important now as any new policy initiative. Failure to do so could derail our progress towards achieving the child poverty and employment targets.

Download the full submission below.

OPF 2005 Pre-Budget Report submission (PDF 46KB)

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