Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to Action for Children’s latest report entitled, All worked out, what recent assessment his Department has made of trends in the level of children living in poverty in Portsmouth South; and if he will make a statement.

The latest statistics on the number and proportion of children who are in low income families by local area are for 2020/21 and can be found in the annual publication: Children in low income families: local area statistics 2014 to 2021 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)(opens in a new tab).

This Government is committed to a sustainable, long-term approach to tackling poverty and supporting people on lower incomes in this country. In 2022/23 we will spend £245 billion through the welfare system in Great Britain including £111 billion on people of working age. In 2023/24, subject to parliamentary approval, we are uprating all benefit rates and State Pensions by 10.1%, and in order to increase the number of households who can benefit from these uprating decisions, the benefit cap levels are also increasing by the same amount.

With over 1.16 million vacancies across the UK, our focus is firmly on supporting people into and to progress in work. Our approach is based on clear evidence about the importance of employment, particularly where it is full-time, in substantially reducing the risk of poverty.