Poverty & homelessness in the UK today

1. Poverty & homelessnessin the UK today Last updated December 2008

2. The UK has one of the highest rates of child poverty in Europe. Child poverty

3. In the UK 2.9 million childrenlive in poverty, many well below the poverty line. Child poverty

4. The number of pensioners in poverty went up by 300,000 in the 12 months to March 2007. Older age poverty

5. Over 2 million pensioners live in poverty. Half of these people live in deep poverty,well below the breadline. Older age poverty

6. 5 million households will be in fuel poverty this winter (2008). More than 20,000 people will die from the cold. Fuel poverty

7. The Minimum Wage does not keep up with inflation in the prices of basic goods and services. Half of all children living in poverty are in households where someone is in paid work. Low pay

8. Benefits have also not risen in line with inflation in everyday costs. Unemployment is rising. Benefits

9. The UK’s total personal debts now stand at a staggering £1,443,000,000,000. Interest repayments are rising, and it is harder to get credit from banks. People are forced to use doorstep lenders instead – at interest rates of 180%apr or more. Debt

10. Asylum seekers aren’t allowed to work but receive a third less support than UK citizens on Income Support. Most asylum applications are refused. In June 2006, only 6,400 refused asylum seekers received government support. The rest received nothing. Thousands of asylum seekers are hungryand homeless because of deliberate policy and bureaucratic errors. Refugees and asylum seekers

11. The number of households in temporary accommodation has increased bynearly 120 per cent since 1996. Housing and homelessness

12. In Britain today, 1.5 million children – that’s one in seven – are suffering in bad housing. Housing and homelessness

13. At 30 per cent, the poverty rate for disabled adults is twice that for non-disabled adults, a difference markedly higher than a decade ago. A graduate with a work-limiting disability is more likely to be lacking but wantingwork than an unqualified person with no disability. Disability

14. At 40 per cent, the income poverty rate among black and minority ethnic people is double the 20 per cent among White British. Ethnic groups

15. A third of older people from ethnic minorities live in poverty. Ethnic groups