Soap, shampoo and toothpaste considered ‘luxury items’ amid soaring poverty in UK, Gordon Brown says
Children in the UK are suffering “the highest levels of poverty in living memory” – with basic toiletries including shampoo, soap and toothpaste now considered “luxury items”, Gordon Brown has said.
Speaking to the Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge, the former prime minister said he was “shocked and ashamed” at the current levels of poverty in Britain, which he said had not been seen for “many, many years”.
Mr Brown raised the plight of what he called “austerity’s children” – those who were born in the last 15 years “who are growing up poor, who probably have never known what it is to be anything other than poor”.
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There are currently 4.3 million children who are officially in poverty after housing costs – translating to 30% of all children in the UK, according to statistics published by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in March.
The figure is an increase of 100,000 on the previous year.
Mr Brown, the most recent Labour prime minister and a former chancellor, told the Politics Hub the cost of living crisis has exacerbated the already-difficult situation for many.
Gordon Brown says people in the UK are struggling to afford basic toiletries like soap and shampoo. Pic: iStock
“We’re running a multi-bank which is a food bank, clothes bank, furnishings bank, toiletries bank, baby bank, all rolled into one,” he said.
“Last winter, people were desperate for bedding just to keep warm. They’d stop heating their homes and they were simply trying to heat themselves.
“As we move into these summer months – toiletries people cannot afford and consider soap and shampoo and toothpaste as a luxury item.
“And that is why the biggest hospital admissions for children under 10 – between five and nine – is for dental decay. And that’s three-and-a-half times higher in the poorer communities than the richer communities. So we are seeing austerity’s children.”
The former prime minister urged Chancellor Jeremy Hunt to take action in the autumn statement he is expected to deliver later in the year, while his advice for Sir Keir Starmer – who is on course to be the next Labour prime minister – was that he should “stick to his principles”.
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Sir Keir has angered some in his party by so far refusing to abolish the two child benefit cap, which the Labour leader has said he cannot commit to due to the “tough decisions” his party will face if propelled into power.
Mr Brown once again repeated his calls for a “root and branch” review of Universal Credit, which he said had “gone wrong” – including the two-child benefit cap that was introduced by the Conservative government in 2017 and prevents parents from claiming child tax credit or universal credit for more than two children.
He indicated to Ridge that he believed the Labour leader should drop the cap, saying: “I think they should do a review, a root and branch review of Universal Credit.
“And you’ve got to look at every aspect of Universal Credit which has gone wrong. And it’s not, of course, just the two child rule that is causing problems – it’s the caps that have been placed on, for example, housing benefits.”
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Appealing to Sir Keir as he prepares for the possibility of reaching Downing Street, Mr Brown said the Labour leader should “never lose sight of why you’re there in the first place”.
“If you do lose sight of that, then you will fail. If you don’t lose sight of it and commit to your principles in implementing them, then I think you’ll succeed, and I’m sure he will,” he said.
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The former chancellor also urged Mr Hunt to continue the £500m household support fund that is due to expire at the end of September, and called for a children’s fund to be created alongside foundations, charities, businesses and governments at both local and national levels.
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Nigel Farage has confirmed he wants to deport women asylum seekers back to the Taliban in Afghanistan if he becomes prime minister.
The Reform UK leader’s position on the topic has not been clear, with him previously saying he would send women back to the fundamentalist regime that took over after western militaries withdrew, before now saying he would.
Mr Farage was speaking to Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby at the Reform UK party conference in Birmingham.
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When asked if he would “detain” women and children and “send them back”, the Clacton MP said “yes”.
Challenged on when he said in August that he was not “discussing” women and children, Mr Farage claimed this was a reference to his desire to seeing men detained on arrival in the UK.
At the time he said he was “very, very clear” on the “deportation of illegal immigrants”, adding: “We are not even discussing women and children at this stage – there are so many illegal males in Britain, and the news reports that said that after my conference yesterday were wrong”
Speaking today, Mr Farage claimed that the UK has a “duty of care” if a four-year-old arrives in a dinghy, for example – but not so for women and men.
“For clarity, those that cross the English Channel will be detained and deported, men and women,” Mr Farage went on.
“Children, we’ll have to think about.”
The Reform leader also rowed back on his pledge to stop all boats within two weeks if he is elected prime minister.
Speaking to the conference yesterday, Mr Farage said: “You cannot come here illegally and stay – we will stop the boats within two weeks of winning government.”
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But speaking to Beth Rigby today, he changed tack – saying “the passing of legislation” would be required.
He said the boats would then be stopped within two weeks, or sooner.
In the interview with Rigby, Mr Farage tried to claim he did not say he would end the boats within two weeks of “winning government”.
But the video of his speech, as well as the transcript released by Reform UK, clearly show him saying: “We will stop the boats within two weeks of winning government.”
When asked why he wouldn’t be able to stop the boats within two weeks of winning government, Mr Farage said it was impossible and “no one” can prevent them crossing the Channel.
The Reform UK leader said the law he wants to introduce will be called the Illegal Migration Act once it is passed by parliament.
He confirmed his agenda includes leaving the European Convention on Human Rights, shutting down asylum hotels and housing people at RAF bases instead, as well as deporting Channel migrants.
Mr Farage also claimed that deportation flights would also begin within two weeks of the law changing, and this combination of factors would stop people from wanting to travel from France.
This strategy all depends on Reform UK winning the next general election – which Labour does not have to call until 2029.
However, Mr Farage says he believes the government will collapse in 2027 due to economic pressure and other factors.
Reform are currently well clear of Labour and the Conservatives in the polling, and are targeting next year’s Welsh, Scottish and English local election to try and win more power in councils and national assemblies.
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