SOSCN is a member of the Campaign to END CHILD POVERTY and fully supports the comments below.
SPENDING REVIEW MAKES CHILDREN PAY TODAY TO PROTECT WEALTHY TOMORROW
20 October 2010
Commenting on the Spending Review, Rhian Beynon, spokesperson for the End Child Poverty Campaign of more than 150 member organisations, said:
"The compensating measures don't go nearly far enough to stop this being a dark day for any family struggling to stay out of poverty, or deep in it already and fearing things will get worse still. With a Child Tax Credit increase worth just 58p more a week next year, the poorest children have less than the price of a loaf of bread to compensate.
"The cuts to benefits now total over £18 billion, with the main part focussed on cuts to support for families. Cuts to support for childcare costs and a freeze for Sure Start services will harm families too and make it harder for them to get and keep paid work.
"We accept the importance of reducing the deficit, but we don't accept the approach chosen. Claims that the wealthiest carry the biggest burden and measured child poverty will not increase did not stand up to independent scrutiny in the emergency budget and we do not accept the claims to survive scrutiny this time either .The Spending Review will almost certainly increase child poverty and increase the economic costs faced by any society with high levels of poverty, inequality and social exclusion.
"The promise of fairness has not been met. While unprecedented cuts to essential support and services are rushed through, the review fails the challenge of saving the tens of billions lost on tax evasion and does not ask the wealthiest to make a full and fair tax contribution. A fairer ratio of cuts to tax rises along with a reduction timetable recognising the risks to jobs and growth in our fragile recovering economy would have met the fairness test. The resulting message is: 'children must pay today to protect the wealthy tomorrow'."
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