Half-measures would have little or no meaningful impact on child poverty rates, Resolution Foundation analysis finds
Failure to abolish the two-child benefit limit would wreck the government’s child poverty ambitions and risk creating levels of hardship not seen under a Labour government for more than half a century, an analysis warns.
The Resolution Foundation said political courage was required for ministers to show they are serious about reversing trends that, if not addressed, would push the rate of child poverty to a historic high by the end of the decade.
It advised the government against introducing half-measures that would dampen the impact of the two-child limit – such as lifting the limit for families in work – saying this would have little or no meaningful effect on overall child poverty rates.
The thinktank’s analysis concludes: “In one fell swoop, the government could reduce the number of children growing up in poverty by 330,000 today and save a further 150,000 children from that fate by 2029-30 if it were bold enough to scrap the two-child limit in full.”
