Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to page 15 of the report, UK Poverty: Causes and Solutions, published by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation on 6 September 2016, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of the recommendation to extend the measurement of poverty indicators to working-age adults without children, and to pensioners.

Estimates of the number and proportion of working-age adults without children and pensioners in relative and absolute low income in the UK are published in the National Statistics Households Below Average Income series.

In 2015/16 on a Before Housing Cost basis (BHC) 14% of working-age adults without children in the UK were in relative low income, and 12% in absolute low income.

In 2015/16 on a After Housing Cost basis (AHC) the proportion of pensioners in relative low income was 16%, with 14% in absolute low income.

In 2015/16, 8% of UK pensioners aged 65 and over were estimated to be in material deprivation.

We will continue to publish data on low income through the annual Households Below Average Income statistics.