Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will bring forward legislative proposals for the introduction of statutory targets to (a) reduce and (b) end child poverty.

The Government is committed to action that delivers a sustainable long-term solution to child poverty, including reforming the benefits system so that it supports employment and higher pay. Universal Credit is designed to help people move into work faster, stay in work longer and spend more time looking to increase their earnings and, when fully rolled out, we expect Universal Credit will boost employment by 200,000, lifting people out of poverty and generating £8 billion in economic benefits every year.

The child poverty targets introduced in 2010 were replaced with two statutory measures of parental employment and children’s educational attainment, the two areas which can make the biggest difference to children’s long-term outcomes. We have no current plans to reintroduce a target-based approach that focuses on income alone.