Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to tackle the number of BAME children living in poverty; and what success criteria her Department sets to measure outcomes on that matter.

This Government provides a strong welfare safety net, spending over £95 billion in the last financial year on working age welfare benefits. Total welfare spending in 2019/20 was £225bn.

Our current focus is on supporting people financially during these unprecedented times. Our long-term ambition remains to build an economy that supports employment, ensuring opportunities for all to enter and progress in work where possible.

We are committed to levelling up skills and opportunity across the country. Using data from the Race Disparity Audit, updated annually since October 2017, and DWP’s own analysis we are continuing to help those underrepresented in the labour market, for example we are investing £90m towards activities that address disparities in youth unemployment.