British govt. scraps target for child poverty eradication ahead of tax credits cut

The British government has announced plan to scrap measures aimed at eradicating 2020 child poverty target before the cut in tax credits.

The official measure has so far defined that a child is being considered in poverty if it is in a household with less than 60% of the national median average income. Iain Duncan Smith, the work and pensions secretary, now wants to replace the system with a new duty to report such as levels of educational attainment, worklessness and addiction.

Now, the government will define poverty not in terms of money, but by measuring the number of workless households and educational attainment of children.

“Measures will identify the proportion of children living in workless households. The educational attainment measures will focus on GCSE attainment for all particularly disadvantaged pupils,” Duncan Smith informed MPs.

The new approach was proposed during the coalition government but was then blocked by Chancellor George Osborne. However, it has resurfaced before a big cut in tax credits which is likely to be announced in the 8 July budget as part of a drive to cut the welfare budget.

Read more