Cameron: More must be done to tackle poverty
David Cameron has changed course on poverty
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Friday, 24, Nov 2006 03:02
David Cameron has today accused the government of failing to tackle poverty.
The Conservative leader today said he was in favour of a "radical" change in policy, moving away from traditional Tory mantra that the poor will automatically benefit as society gets richer.
"Trickle down economics is not working," Mr Cameron said in a London speech to mark the 25th anniversary of the Scarman report, which concluded that 1981 riots were mainly caused by poverty.
He added: "Tackling poverty is not just about a safety net below which people must not fall."
"We must think in terms of an escalator, always moving upwards, lifting people out of poverty. And crucially, an escalator that lifts everyone together."
Mr Cameron said that neither the Tories nor Labour had effectively tackled poverty, criticising the government's claim to have lifted 700,000 children out of poverty.
The Tory leader said that many of those still lived difficult lives and were only marginally above the poverty line. He also added that there were now 750,000 more people with 40 per cent below the median income.
In order to help solve the issue, Mr Cameron said that the causes of poverty must be dealt with on an individual basis and that parents and families must be better supported.
"We recognise that reducing poverty is not an automatic consequence of creating wealth, that economic liberalism must be matched by economic empowerment," he added.
His comments have been dismissed by work and pensions secretary John Hutton.
"David Cameron's attempt to suggest that under Labour there has been a rise in children living in the poorest households - those under 40 per cent of median income - is completely wrong and misleading," he said.
"In fact, he is attacking his own record in government by using figures that start in 1994, when the Tories were in power and child poverty more than doubled."