Poverty: Greater London

(asked on 28th January 2015) - View Source

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in (a) Bethnal Green and Bow constituency and (b) London have been classified as living in absolute poverty in each of the last five years.


Answered by
Esther McVey Portrait
Esther McVey
Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
This question was answered on 2nd February 2015

Estimates of the number and proportion of people in low income are published in the National Statistics Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series.

The number of individuals in absolute poverty is not available at a constituency level. This is because the survey sample sizes are too small to support the production of robust estimates at this geography.

Estimates of the total number of individuals living in absolute poverty at a regional level over time on a three-year average basis are available from the latest Households Below Average Income publication in table 3.20ts which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/households-below-average-income-hbai-199495-to-201213

There are a number of different ways to define and measure poverty. Relative poverty is the most widely recognised measure of poverty and looks at those living below 60% of contemporary median equivalised income. Since 2009/10, the number of people in relative poverty has fallen by 600,000 in the UK on a BHC (Before Housing Costs) basis.

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