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Amid growing fears that children’s plight will worsen after the election, activists say all political parties must commit to bringing forward legislation to end child poverty.
A coalition of children’s charities has written to each of the main political parties, urging them to detail how they will improve the lives of more than four million young people living in poverty and 1.4 million who suffer from mental health problems.
The group, led by Barnardo, the Children’s Society, the National Children’s Agency and the NSPCC, and made up of 200 other organisations, is calling for babies, children and young people to be given greater priority after polling day on 4 July.
“So far, the voices of children and young people have been largely unheard in general election debates and discussions and no political party has yet set out a comprehensive vision for transforming childhood,” the coalition wrote in the letter.
“To fix this situation we need to show political will and ambition, which is why, when you form your next Government, I urge you to take meaningful, cross-sectoral action to address the issues children face and transform their environments.”
In their submissions, the charity groups are calling on political parties to “show national leadership by committing to legislation to end child poverty”, promise reform of child welfare and clarify how they will tackle the young people’s mental health crisis.
“A commitment to dedicate a percentage of the nation’s wealth to issues affecting children would make these policy goals a reality,” the report adds.
Labour in particular has come under intense scrutiny over its plans to alleviate child poverty, with many concerned that Chancellor Sir Keir Starmer is not doing enough to tackle the issue.
The leaked draft of the party’s manifesto I Labour has indicated it has no intention of removing the two-child limit on child benefit, despite continuing pressure to do so.
Many within the Labour Party had hoped the party would introduce universal free school meals, as promised by the Liberal Democrats, but such a measure is not expected to appear in the party’s manifesto.
The Conservatives have promised to raise the child benefit tax threshold from £60,000 to £120,000, which would take more middle-class families out of the tax loop.
A Labour spokesman said: “We are under no illusions about the scale of the task ahead. Labour has already set out how we will get started, with free breakfast clubs in every primary school, plans to reduce fuel poverty and ban exploitative zero-hours contracts, introducing a real living wage and upgrading millions of homes with our Warm Homes Scheme so families can live on permanently cheaper energy bills.”
A Liberal Democrat spokesman said: “We have an ambition to provide free school meals to every child from poverty and, where possible, to every primary school student.”
“We also want to tackle the mental health crisis facing young people by putting dedicated, qualified mental health professionals in every school, at primary and secondary level, funded by a levy on the social media giants which are a big part of the problem. And we will appoint a Minister for Children and Young People and give children and young people a voice.”
“We will have a full plan in our manifesto to support children.”