PM sets out plans to cut child poverty by 550,000

SIR Keir Starmer has set out moral and economic arguments for lifting children out of poverty as the Government launched its strategy on the issue, largely driven by the £3 billion decision to scrap the two-child benefit cap.

- DAVID HUGHES & AINE FOX

The plan - long-awaited by campaigners - comes with around 4.5 million children living in poverty in the UK. The Prime Minister said the statistics are "shocking" and came with an "individual human cost" in terms of skipped meals and poor accommodation.

He asked: "Should any of this really be happening in a country like ours?"

There was a "basic moral argument" for taking action, with poverty acting as a "huge barrier to potential" for children. "After all, if you are arriving in your classroom hungry or tired from sleeping in a cold bed, then you are simply not in the best position to learn. We should not stand for that," he said.

Tackling child poverty is a "sound investment" because it can "improve their life chances and strengthen our economy for the long-term".