Delaying the inevitable

An article in today's Independent suggests that the Government is trying to bury the release of new statistics on child poverty, which experts believe will indicate that the targets both to halve child poverty by 2010, and to eradicate child poverty by 2020 will not be met. The Government in London apparently want to make public this news a day after the local elections, and the London Mayoral elections.(Goverments do have a habit of this.does anyone remember the top up fees debate?)

This may indeed be the case, but reports up to now by Save the Children, Rowntree, and various other organisations have consistently argued along such lines- this is not a shocking new revelation to those who work in the sector.

As with Alistair Darling's meagre contribution during the budget to tackle child poverty,the Government is undoubtedly biding its time in order to spin a positive line on the new stats.

Whenever I ask a question on this issue at the Assembly a Minister almost always throws back some figure or another (no doubt in an attempt to throw me off track) but the reality is that if Westminster continues to fail in introducing progressive policies in the realm of taxation and childcare support, there can be no illusion of success.

Child poverty campaigners don't have the 1st class seats in the lobbying stakes, but if Labour in London are intent on being the saviours of child poverty- if they sincerely want child poverty to be their lasting legacy in Government then they must do more than talk about it in left leaning magazines and local government election leaflets.

I am only too aware of our party's commitment in One Wales to the goals to tackle child poverty,but as I have said before, our actions will only be successful if Westminster is to shift its actions forward.

Generally, I think we should be careful not to position ourselves too narrowly on the poverty agenda here in Wales. Much more must be done to inter-relate the poverty agendas- from in work poverty, to fuel poverty, to pensioner poverty. Even if it is often unitentional, differing groups and organisations in these areas find themselves competing for the political agenda as opposed to working together for a shared goal.

In the meantime, I will await the Government's announcment...