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Is it not a lamentable fact ignored by Opposition Members that for far too long this country has had too many children growing up in workless households, which means bad outcomes for those children over the longer term? Will my right hon. and hon. Friends redouble their efforts to make the tax system as simple as possible and to create incentives for people to work and set a good example for their children?

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Treasury

Oral questions - Supplementary

Status

Answered

Date

12 March 2013

Reference

560 c145

House

House of Commons

Poverty: Children

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children were living in poverty in a household which included a couple in (a) each year since 1997 and (b) each of the last four quarters for which figures are available.

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

29 June 2011

For answer on

4 July 2011

Answered on

6 July 2011

Estimates of the number and proportion of children living in poverty are published in the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series. HBAI uses household (rather than family) income adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, to provide a proxy for standard of living.The following table shows the number and proportion of children living in couple families in households with income below 60% of contemporary median income before housing costs (BHC). Data are provided for each year between 1997-98 and 2009-10. This information is not available on a quarterly basis.

Table: Numbers and proportions of children in couple families in households with equivalised incomes below 60% of contemporary median income before housing costs (BHC)
	Number (million)	Proportion (%)
1997-98	2.0	21
1998-99	2.0	20
1999-2000	1.8	19
2000-01	1.7	17
2001-02	1.7	17
2002-03	1.7	17
2003-04	1.7	17
2004-05	1.6	16
2005-06	1.7	18
2006-07	1.7	18
2007-08	1.8	18
2008-09	1.7	18
2009-10	1.7	17
Notes:
1. These statistics are based on households below average income (HBAI) data available at:
http://research.dwp.gov.uk-asd-index.php?paqe=hbai_arc
2. Data are sourced from the Family Resources survey and covers Great Britain up to 1997-98 and the United Kingdom from 1998-99, with estimates for Northern Ireland imputed for the years 1998-99 through 2001-02. The reference period for FRS figures is single financial years.
3. Disposable household income is adjusted using modified OECD equivalisation factors for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living.
4. All estimates are based on survey data and are therefore subject to uncertainty. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response.
5. Numbers of people in low-income households have been rounded to the nearest 100,000, while proportions have been rounded to the nearest percentage point.
6. Figures have been presented on a before housing cost (BHC) basis. For BHC figures, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, buildings insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income.
7. The household level poverty threshold is defined as the 60% of contemporary median equivalised disposable household income.

Date

6 July 2011

Reference

63716; 530 c1226-7W

House

House of Commons

Child Poverty

Is my right hon. Friend aware that child poverty can also be tackled by helping people on low incomes to get into work or, if they are in work, to earn more? There was talk of a living wage under the previous Government. I am no professor of maths, but is he aware that analysis of materials published by his Department shows that a single mother with two children under 11 who earns £250 a week suffers an effective tax rate of 90% as a result of benefit withdrawal and tax changes? Is not that a broken, complicated and perverse system?

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Oral questions - Supplementary

Status

Answered

Date

19 July 2010

Reference

514 c8

House

House of Commons

Poverty

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent estimate she has made of the number of people with an income below the before housing costs poverty threshold who pay income tax.

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

8 December 2009

Reference

502 c248W; 300393

House

House of Commons

Poverty: Children

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of children have been in poverty in accordance with the Government's definition of child poverty in each (a) year since 1999 and (b) of the last eight quarters.

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

23 November 2009

For answer on

25 November 2009

Answered on

1 December 2009

Poverty statistics, published in the households below average income series, are only produced on an annual basis therefore quarterly information is not available.The Government's measures of child poverty are:"The number of children in relative low income households defined as living in households with incomes below 60 per cent of contemporary median income, before housing costs (shown in table 1).""The number of children in absolute low-income households defined as living in households with incomes below 60 per cent. of median income held constant in real terms, before housing costs (shown in table 2).""The number of children in relative low-income households and in material deprivation defined as families with a material deprivation score of 25 or more and a household income below 70 per cent. contemporary median income, before housing costs (shown in table 3). Note that this information is only available from 2004-05."

Table 1: Number and percentage of children in the United Kingdom living in households with incomes below 60 per cent. of contemporary median income, 1999-2000 to 2007-08, before housing costs
	Before housing costs
Period	Number (million)	Percentage
1999-2000	3.4	26
2000-01	3.1	23
2001-02	3.0	23
2002-03	2.9	23
2003-04	2.9	22
2004-05	2.7	21
2005-06	2.8	22
2006-07	2.9	22
2007-08	2.9	23

Table 2: Number and percentage of children in the United Kingdom living in households with incomes below 60 per cent. of 1998-99 median income held constant in real terms, 1999-2000 to 2007-08, before housing costs
	Before housing costs
Period	Number (million)	Percentage
1999-2000	3.1	23
2000-01	2.5	19
2001-02	2.0	15
2002-03	1.8	14
2003-04	1.8	14
2004-05	1.7	13
2005-06	1.6	13
2006-07	1.7	13
2007/08	1.7	13

Table 3: Percentage and number of children in the United Kingdom falling below thresholds of low income and material deprivation, 2004-05 to 2007-08
	Before housing costs
Period	Number (million)	Percentage
2004-05	2.2	17
2005-06	2.1	16
2006-07	2.0	16
2007-08	2.2	17
Notes:
1. These statistics are based on households below average income (HBAI), sourced from the Family Resources Survey. The Family Resources Survey is available in the Library.
2. Small changes should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response.
3. The reference period for HBAI figures are single financial years.
4. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions' publication HBAI series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living.
5. For the HBAI series, incomes have been equivalised using Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development equivalisation factors.
6. Numbers of children in low income have been rounded to the nearest hundred thousand.
7. Proportions of children in low income have been rounded to the nearest percentage point.
8. A family is in low income and material deprivation if they have a material deprivation score of 25 or more and a household income below 70 per cent. contemporary median income, before housing costs. Figures before 2004-05 are not available.

Date

1 December 2009

Reference

501 c620-1W; 301789

House

House of Commons

Children: Poverty

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children were living in poverty in a household formed by a couple in each year since 1997.

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

18 November 2009

For answer on

23 November 2009

Answered on

30 November 2009

The information requested is provided in the following table.

Number of children living in couple families below 60 per cent. of contemporary median income, 1997-98 to 2007-08, before housing costs
		Number of children (million)
1997-98	GB	2.0
1998-99	GB	2.0
1999-2000	GB	1.8
2000-01	GB	1.7
2001-02	GB	1.7
2002-03	UK	1.7
2003-04	UK	1.7
2004-05	UK	1.6
2005-06	UK	1.7
2006-07	UK	1.7
2007-08	UK	1.8
Notes:
1. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income (HBAI), sourced from the Family Resources Survey. The Family Resources Survey is available in the Library.
2. Small changes should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response.
3. The reference period for Households Below Average Income figures are single financial years.
4. Figures are for the United Kingdom from 2002-03 onwards. Earlier years are for Great Britain only.
5. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication HBAI series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living.
6. For the HBAI series, incomes have been equivalised using Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) equivalisation factors.
7. A family is defined as a man or woman living together as husband and wife, including cohabiters. From January 2006, same-sex civil partners are also included in the same benefit unit. A household will consist of one or more families.
8. Number of children in low income have been rounded to the nearest hundred thousand.

Date

30 November 2009

Reference

501 c387W; 300389

House

House of Commons

Poverty

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of (a) 55 to 59 year olds, (b) 60 to 64 year olds and (c) 65 to 69 year olds lived in households with below 60 per cent. of median income (i) before and (ii)...

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

19 May 2008

For answer on

21 May 2008

Answered on

22 July 2008

This information is given in the following tables.

Table 1: Number and proportion of 55 to 59-year-olds in households below 60 per cent. of median income
			Before housing costs	After housing costs
Coverage	Year	Total number of 55 to 59 year olds (million)	Number below 60% of median income (million)	Percentage below 60% of median income	Number below 60% of median income (million)	Percentage below 60% of median income
GB	1997-98	2.9	0.5	16	0.5	18
	1998-99	3.0	0.5	16	0.5	18
	1999-00	3.1	0.5	15	0.5	17
	2000-01	3.1	0.5	16	0.6	18
	2001-02	3.3	0.5	16	0.6	18
UK	2002-03	3.7	0.6	15	0.6	17
	2003-04	3.9	0.6	16	0.7	18
	2004-05	3.8	0.6	15	0.6	16
	2005-06	3.9	0.6	15	0.6	17
	2006-07	3.9	0.7	17	0.7	18
Source:
Households Below Average Income, DWP

Table 1: Number and proportion of 60 to 649-year-olds in households below 60 per cent. of median income
			Before housing costs	After housing costs
Coverage	Year	Total number of 60 to 64year olds (million)	Number below 60% of median income (million)	Percentage below 60% of median income	Number below 60% of median income (million)	Percentage below 60% of median income
GB	1997-98	2.7	0.5	19	0.6	22
	1998-99	2.7	0.5	19	0.6	21
	1999-00	2.8	0.5	19	0.6	22
	2000-01	2.8	0.5	18	0.6	21
	2001-02	2.8	0.6	21	0.6	22
UK	2002-03	2.9	0.6	19	0.6	21
	2003-04	3.0	0.6	19	0.6	20
	2004-05	3.0	0.5	18	0.6	19
	2005-06	3.1	0.6	18	0.5	18
	2006-07	3.2	0.6	18	0.6	18
Source:
Households Below Average Income, DWP

Table 1: Number and proportion of 65 to 69-year-olds in households below 60 per cent. of median income
			Before housing costs	After housing costs
Coverage	Year	Total number of 65 to 69 year olds (million)	Number below 60% of median income (million)	Percentage below 60% of median income	Number below 60% of median income (million)	Percentage below 60% of median income
GB	1997-98	2.6	0.5	19	0.6	22
	1998-99	2.5	0.5	20	0.5	21
	1999-00	2.5	0.5	19	0.6	22
	2000-01	2.5	0.5	20	0.5	21
	2001-02	2.5	0.4	18	0.5	20
UK	2002-03	2.5	0.5	19	0.5	20
	2003-04	2.5	0.5	18	0.4	18
	2004-05	2.6	0.4	17	0.4	16
	2005-06	2.7	0.5	18	0.4	16
	2006-07	2.6	0.5	18	0.4	16
Notes:
1. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income data.
2. Data for Northern Ireland has only been collected since 2002-03, so the information shown is for the United Kingdom from 2002-03 to 2006-07, and for Great Britain for 1997-98 to 2001-02.
3. Small changes should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response.
4. The reference period for Household Below Average Income figures is single financial years.
5. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication 'Households Below Average Income' (HBAI) series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or "equivalised") for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living.
6. The figures are based on OECD equivalisation factors.
7. Figures have been presented on both a Before Housing Cost and After Housing Cost basis. For Before Housing Cost, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, structural insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income, while for After Housing Cost they are.
8. The Government's preferred measures of low income for pensioners are based on incomes measured after housing costs. Measuring income on an after housing costs basis is appropriate, as two thirds of pensioners own their property outright and so face lower housing costs to meet from their current income while still deriving value from their home. This is different to the current working age population and to the situation for pensioners in the past. Considering pensioners' incomes compared to others after deducting housing costs allows for more meaningful comparisons of income between working age people and pensioners, and between pensioners over time
9. As part of PSA Delivery Agreement 17 three indicators of low income poverty will be monitored: the percentage of pensioners below 60 per cent. contemporary median income, 50 per cent median income and 60 per cent. of 1998-99 median income uprated in line with prices.
10. Numbers of individuals in each age range have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 individuals, while proportions of individuals in each age range have been rounded to the nearest percentage point.
Source:
Households Below Average Income, DWP

Date

22 July 2008

Reference

479 c1199-202W; 207147

House

House of Commons

Poverty: Elderly

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of 60 to 64 year olds lived in households below 40 per cent. of median income (a) before and (b) after deducting household costs in each year since 1997.

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

19 May 2008

For answer on

21 May 2008

Answered on

22 July 2008

Specific information regarding low income for the UK is available in ““Households Below Average Income 1994-95 to 2006-07””. This annual report, which is a National Statistics publication, includes the numbers and proportions of pensioners with incomes below 50 per cent., 60 per cent. and 70 per cent. of median income, and the proportions in persistent poverty.Information covering 40 per cent. of median income is not presented in the Households Below Average Income series as it is an unreliable measure of poverty. This is because households stating the lowest incomes to the Family Resources Survey may not actually have the lowest living standards. Many people who report very low incomes appear to have high spending. Hence any statistics on numbers in this group may be misleading. It is also the case that the Institute for Fiscal Studies in their 'Poverty and Inequality in the UK: 2008' report (June 2008) have said"““Levels of material deprivation generally fall as incomes rise, but children in households with less than 40 per cent. of median income—so-called 'severe' poverty—are, on average, less deprived than those in households with between 40 per cent. and 60 per cent. of median income. This reinforces existing concerns that households with the lowest recorded incomes in HBAI are not those with the lowest living standards.""Some types of minimal income households include:"Under-recording of very fragmented incomes. If a household draws on a high number of different income sources, some may be omitted from their survey responses.""Some households will have transitional periods of low income, being between (possibly well paid) jobs at the precise time of survey interview or being self-employed where incomes can vary greatly from year to year. Older households could be waiting to receive a private or company pension, awaiting the outcome of a benefits claim or be in probate after a partner has died.""There will also be some households who are drawing on savings to cope with perhaps a longer period of minimal incomes.""Finally, there will be some households who are genuinely having to cope on very low incomes, and perhaps be getting into debt to maintain levels of expenditure."Only the final two categories are genuinely low-income, and evidence is that statistics covering below 40 per cent. of median income include a mix of all four categories.The information given in the following table should therefore be treated with caution.

Table 1: Number and proportion of 60 to 64-year-olds in households below 40 per cent. of median income
			Before housing costs	After housing costs
Coverage	Year	Total number of 60 to 64-year-olds (million)	Number below 40 per cent. of median income (million)	Percentage below 40 per cent. of median income	Number below 40 per cent. of median income (million)	Percentage below 40 per cent. of median income
GB	1997-98	2.7	0.1	5	0.2	6
	1998-99	2.7	0.2	5	0.2	6
	1999-2000	2.8	0.2	6	0.2	7
	2000-01	2.8	0.2	6	0.2	6
	2001-02	2.8	0.2	6	0.2	7

UK	2002-03	2.9	0.2	7	0.2	7
	2003-04	3.0	0.2	7	0.2	7
	2004-05	3.0	0.2	6	0.2	7
	2005-06	3.1	0.2	6	0.2	7
	2006-07	3.2	0.2	6	0.2	7
Notes:
1. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income data.
2. Data for Northern Ireland has only been collected since 2002-03, so the information shown is for the United Kingdom from 2002-03 to 2006-07, and for Great Britain for 1997-98 to 2001-02.
3. Small changes should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response.
4. The reference period for Household Below Average Income figures is single financial years.
5. This response includes a lower income threshold of 40 per cent. of the contemporary median income. The data for households with an income lower than 50 per cent. of median is not considered to be accurate as an indicator of living standards. Many of these households while having very low incomes would not be considered poor, but who do genuinely have few sources of income in the short-run. These figures are not National Statistics and caution must be applied because those people stating the lowest incomes in the FRS may not actually have the lowest living standards.
6. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication 'Households Below Average Income' (HBAI) series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or ““equivalised””) for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living.
7. The figures are based on OECD equivalisation factors.
8. Figures have been presented on both a before housing cost and after housing cost basis. For before housing cost, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, structural insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income, while for after housing cost they are.
9. The Government's preferred measures of low income for pensioners are based on incomes measured after housing costs. Measuring income on an after housing costs basis is appropriate, as two thirds of pensioners own their property outright and so face lower housing costs to meet from their current income while still deriving value from their home. This is different to the current working age population and to the situation for pensioners in the past. Considering pensioners' incomes compared to others after deducting housing costs allows for more meaningful comparisons of income between working age people and pensioners, and between pensioners over time.
10. As part of PSA Delivery Agreement 17 three indicators of low income poverty will be monitored: the percentage of pensioners below 60 per cent. contemporary median income, 50 per cent. median income and 60 per cent. of 1998-99 median income uprated in line with prices.
Source:
Households Below Average Income, DWP

Numbers of 60 to 64-year-olds have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 individuals, while proportions of 60 to 64-year-olds have been rounded to the nearest percentage point.

Date

22 July 2008

Reference

479 c1203-6W; 207145

House

House of Commons

Poverty: Young People

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of 18 to 24-year-olds lived in households below 40 per cent. of median income (a) before and (b) after deducting household costs in each year since 1997.

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

19 May 2008

For answer on

21 May 2008

Answered on

9 July 2008

The most common and internationally recognised threshold to measure poverty is income below 60 per cent. of median. Specific information regarding low income for the UK is available in ““Households Below Average Income 1994/95 to 2006/07””. This annual National Statistics publication includes the number and proportion of individuals, children, working age adults and pensioners with incomes below 50 per cent., 60 per cent. and 70 per cent. of median income, and the proportion in persistent poverty. Information covering 40 per cent. of median income is not a sound measure of poverty and is not included in the Households Below Average Income series. This is because households stating the lowest incomes to the Family Resources Survey may not actually have the lowest living standards. Many people who report very low incomes appear to have high spending. Hence, any statistics on numbers in this group may be misleading.The information is in the following table.

Number and proportion of 18 to 24-year-olds in households below 40 per cent. of median income
		Before housing costs	After housing costs
Coverage		Number below 40 per cent. of median income (Million)	Proportion below 40 per cent. of median income (Percentage)	Number below 40 per cent. of median income (Million)	Proportion below 40 per cent. of median income (Percentage)
GB	1997-98	0.2	5	0.6	12
	1998-99	0.2	5	0.5	11
	1999-2000	0.3	6	0.6	13
	2000-01	0.3	6	0.5	11
	2001-02	0.2	5	0.6	12

UK	2002-03	0.3	6	0.6	13
	2003-04	0.3	6	0.6	12
	2004-05	0.3	6	0.6	12
	2005-06	0.4	7	0.8	14
	2006-07	0.3	6	0.7	13
Notes:
1. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income data.
2. Small changes should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response.
3. The reference period for Households Below Average Income figures is single financial years.
4. The Government's preferred measure of relative low-income poverty is defined as being in a household with a household income of less than 60 per cent. of contemporary median income. The figures used in this response, based on a threshold of 40 per cent. of contemporary median income are not National Statistics and caution must be applied because those people stating the lowest incomes in the Family Resources Survey may not actually have the lowest living standards.
5. The methodology of the “Households Below Average Income” series uses disposable household income, adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living.
6. The figures are based on OECD equalisation factors.
7. Figures have been presented on both a before housing cost and after housing cost basis. For before housing cost, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, structural insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income, while for after housing cost they are. This means that after housing cost incomes will generally be lower than before housing cost.
8. Numbers of 18 to 24-year-olds have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 individuals, while proportions of 18 to 24-year-olds have been rounded to the nearest percentage point.
Source:
Households Below Average Income, DWP.

Date

9 July 2008

Reference

478 c1689-90W; 207144

House

House of Commons

Poverty

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of (a) 18 to 24-year-olds and (b) 24 to 30-year-olds lived in households with below 60 per cent. of median income (i) before and (ii) after deducting household costs in each year since 1997.

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

19 May 2008

For answer on

21 May 2008

Answered on

9 July 2008

This information is in the following tables.

Number and proportion of 18 to 24-year-olds in households below 60 per cent. of median income
		Before housing costs	After housing costs
Coverage		Number below 60 per cent. of median income (Million)	Percentage below 60 per cent. of median income	Number below 60 per cent. of median income (Million)	Percentage below 60 per cent. of median income
GB	1997-98	0.8	17	1.2	25
	1998-99	0.7	16	1.2	25
	1999-2000	0.8	18	1.2	26
	2000-01	0.8	17	1.0	23
	2001-02	0.8	17	1.1	24

UK	2002-03	0.8	17	1.3	25
	2003-04	0.8	16	1.3	25
	2004-05	0.8	16	1.3	24
	2005-06	1.0	19	1.5	28
	2006-07	1.0	17	1.6	27

Number and proportion of 24 to 30-year-olds in households below 60 per cent. of median income
		Before housing costs	After housing costs
Coverage		Number below 60 per cent. of median income (Million)	Percentage below 60 per cent. of median income	Number below 60 per cent. of median income (Million)	Percentage below 60 per cent. of median income
GB	1997-98	0.8	15	1.2	20
	1998-99	0.7	13	1.1	19
	1999-2000	0.8	14	1.1	20
	2000-01	0.8	14	1.1	20
	2001-02	0.7	13	1.0	18

UK	2002-03	0.7	14	1.0	20
	2003-04	0.7	14	1.0	20
	2004-05	0.7	13	1.0	19
	2005-06	0.7	13	1.0	19
	2006-07	0.7	14	1.1	21
Notes:
1. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income data.
2. Small changes should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response.
3. The reference period for Households Below Average Income figures is single financial years.
4. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication ““Households Below Average Income”” series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living.
5. The figures are based on OECD equalisation factors.
6. Figures have been presented on both a before housing cost and after housing cost basis. For before housing cost, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, structural insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income, while for after housing cost they are. This means that after housing cost incomes will generally be lower than before housing cost.
7. Numbers of individuals in each age range have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 individuals, while proportions of individuals in each age range have been rounded to the nearest percentage point.
8. Individuals aged 24 are included in both the 18 to 24-year-old age range and the 24 to 30-year-old age range.
Source:
Households Below Average Income, DWP.

Date

9 July 2008

Reference

478 c1686-8W; 207146

House

House of Commons

Children: Poverty

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children were in absolute low-income households in each year since 1997; and what proportion of all children these figures represented in each such year, broken down by age.

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

6 May 2008

For answer on

8 May 2008

Answered on

2 June 2008

The most common measure of low income used to capture poverty is individuals living in households with an income below 60 per cent. of contemporary median income, adjusted to take account of family size and composition. Analysis of low income households can be found in the annual National Statistics publication Households Below Average Income (HBAI).The Government's preferred measure of absolute low income poverty is defined as being in a household with a household income of less than 60 per cent. of the 1998-99 median income held constant in real terms. Available information is shown in the following tables.Children have been split by age into four age bands. This is in line with the age breakdown presented in the HBAI publication.

Table 1: Number of children in absolute low income households (before housing costs)
Coverage		Number of children (millions)
GB	1997-98	3.5

UK	1998-99	3.4
	1999-2000	3.1
	2000-01	2.5
	2001-02	2.0
	2002-03	1.8
	2003-04	1.8
	2004-05	1.7
	2005-06	1.6
Source:
Households Below Average Income, 1997-98 to 2005-06

Table 2: Number of children in absolute low income households (after housing costs)
Coverage		Number of children (millions)
GB	1997-98	4.4

UK	1998-99	4.4
	1999-2000	4.1
	2000-01	3.6
	2001-02	3.0
	2002-03	2.7
	2003-04	2.5
	2004-05	2.3
	2005-06	2.4
Source:
Households Below Average Income, 1997-98 to 2005-06

Table 3: Children in absolute low income households as a proportion of all children and by specific age bands (before housing costs)
Percentage
		Age
Coverage		0 to 4	5 to 10	11 to 15	16 to 18	All children
GB	1997-98	8	10	7	2	28
	1998-99	8	10	7	2	26
	1999-2000	7	8	6	2	23
	2000-01	6	6	6	2	19
	2001-02	4	5	5	1	15

UK	2002-03	4	4	4	2	14
	2003-04	4	4	5	1	14
	2004-05	3	4	4	1	13
	2005-06	3	4	4	1	13
Source:
Households Below Average Income, 1997-98 to 2005-06

Table 4: Children in absolute low income households as a proportion of all children and by specific age bands (after housing costs)
Percentage
		Age
Coverage		0 to 4	5 to 10	11 to 15	16 to 18	All children
GB	1997-98	10	13	9	3	34
	1998-99	10	12	9	3	34
	1999-00	10	10	8	2	31
	2000-01	8	9	8	2	27
	2001-02	7	8	7	2	23

UK	2002-03	6	7	6	2	21
	2003-04	6	6	6	2	20
	2004-05	5	5	6	2	18
	2005-06	6	6	5	2	19
Notes:
1. The reference period for households below average income figures is single financial years.
2. A child is defined as anyone aged under 16 or an unmarried 16 to 18-year-old in full-time non-advanced education.
3. The information shown in Tables 1 and 2 is for the United Kingdom from 1998-99 to 2005-06, and for Great Britain for 1997-98. Data for Northern Ireland has been imputed for 1998-99 to 2001-02. The information shown in Tables 3 and 4 is for the United Kingdom from 2002-03 to 2005-06, and for Great Britain for 1997-98 to 2001-02, as data for Northern Ireland has only been imputed for the headline statistics.
4. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication 'Households Below Average Income' (HBAI) series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living.
5. The figures are based on OECD equalisation factors.
6. Figures have been presented on both a before housing cost and after housing cost basis. For before housing cost, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, structural insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income, while for after housing cost they are. This means that after housing cost incomes will generally be lower than before housing cost.
7. Numbers of children have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 children, while proportions of children have been rounded to the nearest percentage point. Ages have been split into four bands because of sample sizes. Total numbers of children are in line with National Statistics mid-year estimates.
8. Small year-on-year movements should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response.
Source:
Households Below Average Income, 1997-98 to 2005-06

Date

2 June 2008

Reference

476 c572-6W; 204648

House

House of Commons

Children: Poverty

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children living in relative poverty were in families with (a) three or more children and (b) four or more children in each year since 1997; and what proportion of (i) children in poverty and (ii) all children these...

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

6 May 2008

For answer on

8 May 2008

Answered on

2 June 2008

The most common measure of low income used to capture poverty and the measure preferred by the Government is individuals living in households with an income below 60 per cent. of contemporary median income, adjusted to take account of family size and composition. Analysis of low income households can be found in the annual National Statistics publication, Households Below Average Income (HBAI).Available information is shown in the following tables.

Table 1: Number and proportion of children in relative low income households (Before Housing Costs)
		Number of children in the family
		Three or more	Four or more
Coverage		Number in relative low income households (millions)	Percentage of all children in relative low income households	Percentage of all children	Number in relative low income households (millions)	Percentage of all children in relative low income house holds	Percentage of all children
GB	1997-98	1.7	49	13	0.7	22	6
	1998-99	1.7	50	13	0.7	22	6
	1999-2000	1.5	47	12	0.7	22	6
	2000-01	1.4	46	11	0.6	21	5
	2001-02	1.3	45	10	0.6	19	4
UK	2002-03	1.3	44	10	0.5	18	4
	2003-04	1.2	42	9	0.5	19	4
	2004-05	1.1	41	9	0.5	20	4
	2005-06	1.1	41	9	0.5	17	4
Source: Households Below Average Income, 1997-98 to 2005-06.

Table 2: Number and proportion of children in relative low income households (After Housing Costs)
		Number of children in the family
		Three or more	Four or more
Coverage		Number in relative low income households (millions)	Percentage of all children in relative low income households	Percentage of all children	Number in relative low income households (millions)	Percentage of all children in relative low income households	Percentage of all children
GB	1997-98	1.9	45	15	0.8	19	6
	1998-99	2.0	45	15	0.8	19	6
	1999-2000	1.9	45	15	0.8	20	7
	2000-01	1.7	44	14	0.7	18	5
	2001-02	1.7	43	13	0.7	18	5
UK	2002-03	1.6	41	12	0.6	16	5
	2003-04	1.5	40	12	0.7	18	5
	2004-05	1.4	39	11	0.6	17	5
	2005-06	1.4	38	11	0.6	15	4
Notes: 1. The reference period for HBAI figures is single financial years. 2. A child is defined as anyone aged under 16 or an unmarried 16 to 18-year-old in full-time non-advanced education. 3. A family is defined as a single adult or a couple living as married and any dependant children. 4. The information shown in Tables 1 and 2 is for the United Kingdom from 2002-03 to 2005-06, and for Great Britain for 1997-98 to 2001-02. 5. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication ““Households Below Average Income”” (HBAI) series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or ““equivalised””) for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. 6. The figures are based on OECD equalisation factors. 7. Figures have been presented on both a Before Housing Cost and After Housing Cost basis. For Before Housing Cost, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, structural insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income, while for After Housing Cost they are. This means that After Housing Cost incomes will generally be lower than Before Housing Cost. 8. Numbers of children have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 children, while proportions of children have been rounded to the nearest percentage point. 9. Small year-on-year movements should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. Source: Households Below Average Income, 1997-98 to 2005-06.

Date

2 June 2008

Reference

476 c575-8W; 204649

House

House of Commons

Africa

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 13 June 2005, Official Report, columns 2–3W, on Africa, if he will rank African countries according to the measure of relative poverty in his Department's financial model.

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

14 June 2005

For answer on

16 June 2005

Answered on

21 June 2005

The Department for International Development uses a financial model to help inform decisions on bilateral aid allocation to its programmes in low-income countries in each region. The model takes account of both the extent of a country's poverty and the likely effectiveness of aid in reducing poverty there. The amount of aid which a country is likely to receive from other donors is also taken into account.Within the part of the model that takes account of the extent of a country's poverty, gross national income per capita, converted to dollars using purchasing power parity rates, is used as a proxy indicator of relative poverty. This data is drawn from the World Bank's World Development Indicators database.The following table ranks African countries according to this measure. Data is shown for 2003, the latest year for which information is currently available.

Country	GNI per capita 2003 ($, PPP)
Sierra Leone	530.00
Malawi	590.00
Tanzania	620.00
Burundi	630.00
Congo, Democratic Republic	660.00
Guinea-Bissau	680.00
Ethiopia	710.00
Congo, Republic	730.00
Madagascar	800.00
Niger	830.00
Zambia	850.00
Nigeria	900.00
Mali	960.00
Eritrea	1,020.00
Kenya	1,030.00
Mozambique	1,060.00
Central African Republic	1,080.00
Chad	1,080.00
Benin	1,110.00
Burkina Faso	1,170.00
Rwanda	1,290.00
Côte d'Ivoire	1,400.00
Uganda	1,430.00
Senegal	1,620.00
Togo	1,640.00
Comoros	1,720.00
Gambia, The	1,740.00
Sudan	1,760.00
Mauritania	1,870.00
Angola	1,910.00
Cameroon	1,990.00
Guinea	2,080.00
Djibouti	2,140.00
Ghana	2,190.00
Lesotho	3,100.00
Egypt, Arab Republic	3,940.00
Morocco	3,940.00
Swaziland	4,850.00
Cape Verde	5,130.00
Gabon	5,500.00
Algeria	5,930.00
Namibia	6,660.00
Tunisia	6,850.00
Botswana	8,370.00
South Africa	10,130.00
Mauritius	11,280.00
Equatorial Guinea	n/a
Liberia	n/a
Libya	n/a
Vlayotte	n/a
Sao Tome and Principe	n/a
Seychelles	n/a
Somalia	n/a
Zimbabwe	n/a
Source: World Development Indicators 2005

Date

21 June 2005

Reference

435 c943-5W;435 c947-8W; 5147

House

House of Commons

UN Human Poverty Index

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the merits of the United Nations Development Programme human poverty index as a measure of poverty; and what account is taken of the human poverty index in the allocation of UK aid to Africa.

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

20 June 2005

Reference

4973; 435 c695-6W;435 c699-700W

House

House of Commons

Dept for Education and Skills

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what funding he plans to make available to universities to enable them to promote applications.

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Education and Skills

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

26 October 2004

Reference

425 c1168W; 192924

House

House of Commons

Dept for Work and Pensions

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many children in (a) 1997, (b) 1999 and (c) 2001 were living in households with an income below 60 per cent. of median. - Ref to Households Below Average Income 1994-95 to 1999-2000 National Statistics Press Release, in Library.

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

1 May 2002

Reference

45292; 384 c869W

House

House of Commons

Dept for Work and Pensions

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many families with at least one child below the age of five years were living in poverty in (a) 1997, (b) 1999 and (c) 2001, defined as those living in households with below 60 per cent. of median income....

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

19 March 2002

For answer on

1 May 2002

Answered on

1 May 2002

Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many families with at least one child below the age of five years were living in poverty in (a) 1997, (b) 1999 and (c) 2001, defined as those living in households with below 60 per cent. of median income. [45287] Malcolm Wicks: Such information as is available is presented in the table. Number of families with one or more children under five years of age, living in households with below 60 per cent. of contemporary median household income million _________________________________________________________________________________________________. Before housing costs After housing costs 1996-97 0.7 1.0 1997-98 0.6 0.9 1998-99 0.6 0.9 1999-2000 0.6 0.9 _________________________________________________________________________________________________. Notes: 1. All figures are estimates and are taken from the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) data set which is derived from the Family Resources Survey (FRS), which does not include Northern Ireland. The latest period for which data are available is the financial year 1999-2000. 2. The estimates are sample counts, which have been adjusted for non-response using multipurpose grossing factors that control for tenure, council tax band and a number of other variables. Estimates are subject to both sampling error and to variability in non-response. The income measure used is weekly net (disposable) equivalised household income (that is to say income that is adjusted to reflect the composition of the household). 3. The estimates are presented on both a Before Housing Costs (BHC) and an After Housing Costs (AHC) basis in line with HBAI conventions. Source: FRS

Date

1 May 2002

Reference

45287; 384 c869W;384 c868-9W

House

House of Commons

Dept for Work and Pensions

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the total share of national income received by the poorest 10 per cent. of the population was in (a) 1997, (b) 1999 and (c) 2001; what percentage of people living below (a) 50 per cent, (b) 60 per cent....

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

25 April 2002

Reference

384 c431-2W;384 c430W; 45290;45556

House

House of Commons

Treasury

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will provide the basis for ministers' calculations concerning the number of children who have been lifted out of poverty by the measures introduced by his Government; and what assessment he has made of how many children would be...

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Treasury

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

26 March 2002

Reference

45288; 382 c989-90W;382 c983W

House

House of Commons

Dept for Work and Pensions

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of children were living in poverty defined as living below 50 per cent. mean income after housing costs, expressed as an average for the period (a) 1992 to 1997 and (b) 1997 to 2001; what proportion of the...

Asked by

James Clappison (Conservative)

Answering body

Department for Work and Pensions

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Date

14 March 2002

Reference

381 c1239W;381 c1241W; 40294;40296

House

House of Commons

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Answering member

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