Poverty levels among pensioners, children increase in Britain: report

LONDON, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- A state-of-the-nation report published Monday shows 14 million people in Britain are living in poverty.

This is made up of eight million working-age adults, four million children and 1.9 million pensioners, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation says in its report.

The foundation warned poverty rates among pensioners has risen 16 percent, with poverty among children up 30 percent. The report warns that gains made in recent years to tackle poverty are at risk of being lost without immediate action. The new report examines poverty rates in the UK, and looks at how figures have changed over the past 20 years.

It says that over the last 20 years, Britain has dramatically reduced poverty among people who had traditionally been most at risk, pensioners and certain types of families with children, but poverty rates for both groups have started to rise again.

A third of children lived in poverty 20 years ago, falling to 27 percent in 2012. In 1994-1995, 28 percent of pensioners lived in poverty, falling to 13 percent in 2012.

But the report warns that almost 400,000 more children and 300,000 more pensioners are now living in poverty in Britain than in 2012-2013.

Campbell Robb, CEO of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, said: "These worrying figures suggest that we are at a turning point in our fight against poverty. Political choices, wage stagnation and economic uncertainty mean that hundreds of thousands more people are now struggling to make ends meet. This is a very real warning sign that our hard-fought progress is in peril."

Robb said that action to tackle child and pensioner poverty has provided millions of families with better living standards and financial security. However, record employment is not leading to lower poverty, changes to benefits and tax credits are reducing incomes and crippling costs are squeezing budgets to breaking point.

"As we prepare to leave the EU, we have to make sure that our country and our economy works for everyone and doesn't leave even more people behind."

New threats are emerging to people in the poorest fifth of households, adds the report. The squeeze on living standards now risks storing up problems for the future, with people being caught in a "standstill generation" -- unable to build the foundations for a decent, secure life.

The foundation has called on the government to end a four-year freeze on working age benefits and tax credits. The freeze, says the report, is the single biggest policy driver behind rising poverty. It also wants the government to invest in genuinely affordable homes to rent and buy. Enditem