Economic growth alone won’t be enough to lift millions of children out of poverty, a damning new report has warned. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) has called on the government to take urgent action, including scrapping the controversial two-child benefit cap, if it hopes to make a dent in child poverty before the next election.
The latest figures paint a bleak picture: 14.35 million people in the UK were living in relative low income in the year to March 2023, including a staggering 4.33 million children—roughly one in three.
Labour has made economic growth its number one priority, with Keir Starmer instructing ministers to ditch policies that don’t contribute to boosting the economy. But JRF argues that waiting for growth alone is not just ineffective—it’s “deeply unjust.”
“Growth alone won’t fix this”
The JRF report pulls no punches: “Economic stability is necessary to sustainably reduce poverty. However, economic growth on its own won’t reduce poverty, and it is deeply unjust to force families to wait before they see an improvement in their lives—especially given the picture of deepening poverty.”
JRF chief executive Paul Kissack says a hands-off approach simply won’t cut it:
“Child poverty will only be driven down through focused, deliberate and determined policy action. Even very strong economic growth won’t automatically change the picture. Policy action must start with the system designed to help people meet their costs of living—social security.”
He goes further, arguing that the current benefits system isn’t just failing, but is actively pushing people into worse financial hardship. “Cruel limits and caps”, like the two-child benefit cap, are forcing struggling families deeper into poverty.
Lib Dems slam government inaction
Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Daisy Cooper didn’t hold back in her criticism, accusing both the current and former governments of failing the poorest in society.
“From their refusal to scrap the two-child benefit cap to their heartless decision to cut winter fuel payments, this government has done next to nothing to tackle the growing poverty pandemic in this country,” she said.
She warned that without urgent action, “we will continue to see these intolerable situations. It’s heartbreaking that so many people still struggle to afford the very basics—and the numbers are only growing.”
She also took aim at Labour, saying: “This deep poverty is a scar on the nation made by the Conservative Party, but the Labour government has so far just sat on its hands.”
Government defends its record
A government spokesperson insisted that tackling child poverty remains a priority, stating:
“No child should be in poverty – that’s why our ministerial taskforce is exploring all levers available across government to give children the best start in life.”
The spokesperson pointed to policies such as increasing the living wage, uprating benefits, and making changes to Universal Credit, which they claim will support 700,000 of the poorest families.
However, critics argue these measures don’t go nearly far enough to address the scale of the crisis.
The big question now is whether Labour will step up and take the action campaigners are demanding—or whether millions of struggling families will be left waiting for an economic turnaround that may never come.
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