Further graphic evidence of Labour’s prosecution of the interests of the rich against the poor was revealed in a study by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation released on 17 June which showed how inequality had grown over the 20 years from 1980 to 2000. The proportion of ‘non-poor, non-wealthy’ households fell from 66.1% in 1980 to 55.7% by 1990, and to 50.4% by 2000. Those defined as either ‘core’ or ‘breadline poor’ increased from 17.1% to 21.3% in 1990 and then to 27% by 2000. Those defined as ‘wealthy’ increased from 16.8% to 22.6%. Between 1990 and 2000 the proportion of ‘exclusively wealthy’ rose from 3.5% to 5.6%. This is consistent with the fact that the wealthiest 1% increased their share of national wealth from 20% to 23% between 1996 and 2002, whilst that of the poorest 50 % shrank from 7% to 5%. This trend has continued.
Inequality therefore has continued to grow under Labour, and although there has been a reduction in poverty over the last ten years, this has in no way restored the 1979 position before the Tories came to office. Thus the proportion of the population living in poverty had fallen from 25% in 1996/97 to 20% by 2004/05, whilst the figures for children were 33% and 27% respectively. But given that average income had risen 26% over the same period this progress is meagre especially when we remember that in 1979 13% of the population and 14% of children lived below the poverty line. Moreover recent figures suggest that poverty has begun to rise again: 100,000 more children were living in poverty in 2005/06 than in the previous year.
A future article in FRFI will look in more detail at the Rowntree Report
FRFI 198 August / September 2007
