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Child Poverty Bill

My Lords, the amendment would change the name of the commission from the Child Poverty Commission to the Family and Child Poverty Commission. This amendment and Amendments 46 and 75 aim to eliminate inconsistencies in the Bill, both in the drafting and in the Government’s focus. Quite rightly, the early clauses seeking to measure the income that benefits a child use the income of the household. This is unavoidable since, as we have heard more than once in your Lordships' House and another place, children do not have an income as such. The Government’s research report quite rightly noted that, ""because it is not clear how well the measures of living standards relate to the children, this report uses the formulation ‘households with children’"." For a few clauses, therefore, the Government have accepted that children, and the families in which they are brought up, are inextricably linked, but this is not the case in later clauses. In my three amendments in this group, I have sought to ensure that the commission is able to keep families, not just children, at the front of its activities. It is extraordinary that the duties placed on this organisation do not suggest that it is at least as important to consult parents as it is children. I am sure that the Minister will point out that if the commission wishes to consult the family as a whole, it may do so under catch-all Clause 9(4)(d), which is true. However, I am sure that he will admit that the Bill seems to imply that the commission’s focus is on researching what children think they need and not on the difficulties that families might have in providing for those needs. In another place, our honourable colleagues heard some very interesting evidence from a variety of organisations involved with the families whom this Bill is intended to benefit. One organisation in particular raised the question of the impact of maternal nutrition on the future health of the child. How can the commission be expected to provide advice to the Secretary of State if its duties do not cover such a matter? If the commission is to be the expert body that we hope it will be, it must be able to inform itself about possible causes and not confine itself to the concerns of children. I beg to move.