Millions of families pushed to brink of poverty by rising living costs, report warns
We know from previous work by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation that the minimum income requirement for a decent quality of life is higher in rural areas this report is therefore clearly bad news for rural dwellers. It tells us:
Millions of families have been pushed to the brink of poverty because of rising living costs and stagnating wages, a new report warns.
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation said the number of people living below an adequate standard of living had increased by four million to 19 million over the past six years.
And it said the situation was likely to worsen unless the Government took drastic action to protect the poorest.
The increase in living costs has been driven by rising prices of goods and services, research found.
Inflation reached a two-and-a-half-year high in January as food and fuel prices pushed up the cost of living.
The price of a minimum “basket of goods” has jumped by up to 30 per cent since 2008, but average earnings have only gone up by half that amount, said the report.
Campbell Robb, chief executive of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, said: “These stark figures show just how precarious life can be for many families.
“Government focus on people on modest incomes is welcome, but it cannot be at the expense of those at the poorest end of the income scale. It must remember just about managing today can become poverty tomorrow.