“Chris Grayling is right to point to the damagingly high levels of inequality and poverty which ‘cross-cut and reinforce’ other inequalities and to highlight the injustices of the poorest families paying too high a tax burden. But he is wrong to imagine that toughening up welfare to work policies can solve these problems – get tough messages pander to prejudice but do not tackle child poverty.
“Making yet more demands on the most vulnerable groups - those often failed by services and who face significant barriers - to enter employment that may not be available, sustainable or lift families from poverty is unjust and unworkable. What is needed is support that tackles the causes of poverty and services that remove barriers to decent employment - those measures are more effective than expensive policies that punish its consequences. The problem is the unfair structure of society, not the behaviour of poor people.
“Boosting social mobility means improving the educational opportunities availability to poor children, providing families with the income – through both better paid work and a higher safety net - needed to safeguard children from poverty, and providing services and support that protect vulnerable families and enhance child wellbeing.”
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