Kate Green
Main Page: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)Department Debates - View all Kate Green's debates with the HM Treasury
(12 years, 7 months ago)
Commons Chamber6. What estimate he has made of the likely effect on the level of child poverty of the fiscal measures in his autumn statement.
8. What estimate he has made of the likely effect on the level of child poverty of the fiscal measures in his autumn statement.
When measured against previously announced policies, there will be an estimated increase of 100,00 in children living in households with less than 60% of median income in 2012-13.
The reason for that decision was to prioritise the resources we have available on those perhaps least able to deal with the difficulties of the cost of living.
The Chancellor announced in the autumn statement an increase in the number of child care places for disadvantaged two-year-olds, but at the same time we are hearing of cuts to local authority funding for child care, and places are closing. How will the Government guarantee that these new places for disadvantaged children will be additional places and not simply a matter of money being moved out of one pot to pay for another?
We expect that that policy will be additional in the sense that it is extending it to disadvantaged two-year-olds. We expect 130,000 disadvantaged two-year-olds to be assisted by the 15 hours of free child care, and we certainly expect local authorities to take sensible decisions with the limited resources that they also have.