Joe Rossiter reflects on the second webinar – Turning the Tide on Child Poverty – delivered in partnership between the IWA and WCPP
Following the second in our Ways Forwards for Wales series of webinars in partnership WCPP (available to watch back here) I’m going to discuss some of the key policy themes raised and some of the considerations for the next Welsh Government regarding poverty.
Shared powers and responsibilities
The first point that needs strongly reinforcing is that poverty is a policy area where powers and responsibilities are (unevenly) shared between devolved and reserved levels. When we speak of policy to reduce poverty, we are talking about a whole host of different areas – from economic policy to the social security system – it’s therefore complex.
Attempting to meaningfully reduce poverty in Wales is an endeavour which undoubtedly requires both governments to pull specific policy levers to achieve change at the different scales simultaneously. The disproportionate impact of UK Government decisions on the two child limit and the winter fuel payment (as well as the general sustained lack of economic growth) demonstrates the wider context which set the conditions which largely determine the level of poverty experienced in Wales.
Since devolution, poverty has persisted at an unacceptably high rate in Wales, at a rate of about 22%. Indeed, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation suggests that poverty rates in Wales have ‘flatlined’ since the mid-1990s.
This means that devolved government must be both proactive in devolved policy areas and responsive to reserved areas which the devolved level can only seek to influence. We could focus on the things we wish the UK Government would do, but it won’t get us very far. The next Welsh Government will also be working with a new UK Government Child Poverty Strategy and within a social security system which is reserved. Not acknowledging that is denying a fundamental reality.
With that in mind, and in the run up to the Senedd election, the focus should now be on ensuring that, at the devolved level, we do everything we can to extract maximum benefit from the limited powers we do have to lift people out of poverty in Wales. Those powers are various and they cut across the whole of devolved government.
So, controlling the controllables and extracting maximum impact is the goal. The question therefore becomes: Where can devolved levers be used to have the biggest impact on poverty, at the biggest scale possible? The rest of this article will explore some key issues from that standpoint.
The state of poverty in Wales
Before delving into solutions, it is worth considering the state of poverty in Wales today. Speakers at the event were clear in highlighting the systemic nature of poverty facing people in Wales and across the UK.
Around a quarter of families with children in Wales face hunger, which is three times the rate of families without children.
Since devolution, poverty has persisted at an unacceptably high rate in Wales, at a rate of about 22%. Indeed, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation suggests that poverty rates in Wales have ‘flatlined’ since the mid-1990s. This is despite the near continual focus on tackling the issue from devolved government. It’s worth saying that generally these trends are also evident across the UK, and this can be seen in the cost of living crisis which has hit all parts of the nation. Wales does, however, have the worst poverty levels in the UK.
More people in Wales are also facing more severe hardship. Nearly half of all people in poverty in Wales are in very deep poverty, struggling to pay for essentials like food, heat and housing. Emergency interventions like food banks are now at risk of becoming so omnipresent in our communities that they are normalised – an indication of a systemic failing to tackle poverty. The outlook on poverty in Wales to 2030, under current UK growth figures, are ‘very challenging’ according to the Bevan Foundation.
Whilst poverty rates in general are unacceptable, children in Wales are the most likely to be living in poverty, with the child poverty rate at 31%. Around a quarter of families with children in Wales face hunger, which is three times the rate of families without children. That children and families are the most at risk of facing poverty presents a number of moral and practical questions.
A system which disincentivises having children also has long-term economic impacts, with forecasts indicating an ageing population and a shrinking of the working age population in the decades ahead. These elements amount to major economic challenges for the future, with too few tax payers paying for increased public service demand.
Poverty affects every area of life and places additional strain on wider public services in Wales as well as the vast human cost. It negatively impacts health outcomes, educational performance, economic outcomes, social justice and community cohesion.
Our approach to tackling poverty is patently not working, whether at UK or Welsh level. To see a radical shift, we need radical action, at a pace and scale which we haven’t thus got close to achieving. So, how do we go about it?
Syniadau uchelgeisiol, awdurdodol a mentrus.
Ymunwch â ni i gyfrannu at wneud Cymru gwell.
Pan-government commitment needed
Achieving a goal as ambitious as significantly minimising poverty in Wales means making a pan-government commitment. It will require resources that will necessitate trade-offs in other policy areas. It means not making the achievement of other goals priorities. Wales has neither the budget nor the fiscal flexibility to do everything.
Such a goal requires a pan-government commitment because the policy levers that are controlled at devolved level sit in multiple areas. Health, housing, education, childcare, employment, transport and wider economic decision-making would all have to re-orientate their priorities towards this goal.
Any action must also take a preventative approach, stopping people from falling into poverty in the first place, and responding firmly and strongly to support when it does happen. Preventative approaches to build financial resilience are needed to turn the tide child on poverty through areas of policy areas like health, education and employment. A preventative approach also recognises that some groups are more at risk of experiencing poverty today, with the Wellbeing of Wales report noting that ‘children, disabled people and ethnic minorities are most likely to be affected.’
Potential solutions
Aligned to the above, what is required is a pan-government action plan to detail a suite of interventions to tackle poverty. What is also needed is a reallocation of resources towards achieving the goal of reducing poverty in Wales.
As families with young children are the most at risk of being in poverty today, free at the point of use childcare for young children is an essential first step in removing a key burdensome cost. Removing childcare-related barriers to work can not only help to boost household incomes, but also supports further contributions to our local economies. Providing universal access to free, nutritious, sustainable and locally sourced school meals can also have a strong effect.
A key proposal discussed at the event was the potential for introducing a Child Payment (a weekly payment per child available to low income households) as has been rolled out in Scotland. This is likely the highest impact policy that could be achieved at the devolved level to tackle child poverty. If the next Welsh Government is serious about eradicating poverty as a leading government mission, then this must seriously be considered. As outlined above, it would take significant funding, and policy trade-offs elsewhere in the system. But if it is a headline commitment, then this is worth it.
Without interventions of this scale we risk continuing persistent hardship in our communities. Poverty continues to blight our nation, holding back so much opportunity. Now is the time to start thinking differently.
Investment in affordable, accessible transport solutions is also critical. Capping bus fares would be the easiest way of achieving this, removing the barriers that stop people from being able to access services and economic opportunities in their areas.
Making access to support services and payments already available to households in Wales is also required. Continuing existing conversations on creating a ‘one stop shop’ that provides both crisis and ongoing financial support and access to entitlements is required. These conversations have already commenced with the Welsh Benefits Charter.
Gofod i drafod, dadlau, ac ymchwilio.
Cefnogwch brif felin drafod annibynnol Cymru.
Another critical component is designing support services that destigmatise accessing support. Co-designing locally based support services with the people who use them can help to ensure that people get the support they need, when they need, where they need it. Offering cash first support is the best crisis support available. A sustainable increase in advice services will ensure that people can access the support they need. We need services to fulfill a number of functions: providing realistic pathways out of poverty, providing access to cash support where applicable and signposting to mental health support, when we know the crushing daily mental load of living in deep persistent poverty.
Housing is another area which is driving people into poverty. The private rental sector is the largest driver of low household incomes. A meaningful investment in social housebuilding is required to ensure the housing stock meets the needs of our communities. This will help drive down rents and ensure that we decrease the need for costly emergency accommodation. The wider cost of living crisis, alongside rising energy costs also put pressures on household budgets (albeit they are issues the devolved level can do little about in the short term).
Conclusion
If the next Welsh Government seriously wishes to end poverty in Wales, this is the scale of ambitious policies required to move the dial. As the Bevan Foundation has outlined, a piecemeal and localised approach to the issue post-devolution has not had the impact we could have hoped for. Instead, serious investment is required at national level. Without interventions of this scale we risk continuing persistent hardship in our communities. Poverty continues to blight our nation, holding back so much opportunity. Now is the time to start thinking differently. If this tackling poverty is a priority, we need to make it such.
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