Within weeks of taking office last July, the new UK Labour government launched a new cross-government child poverty unit – to deliver on its manifesto promises. The new taskforce rightly includes the Department for Work and Pensions, Department for Education, and theTreasury. But what we don’t know yet is whether this will truly be a strategy to reduce poverty for every child – including migrant children.
The last decade has seen a significant increase in the number of people in the UK living in deep poverty, or facing destitution. Pressure on food banks, local authorities and advice services has soared as people on low-incomes struggle to weather changing circumstances and stay financially resilient. At the core of our social contract is the idea that when someone is faced with such hardship, the social security system – if functioning correctly – should act as a protective barrier, preventing people from ending up in poverty in the first place.
Migrant families, on the other hand, are excluded by design from this system by the No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) visa condition. Almost all migrants in the UK who have not yet attained permanent residency (also known as indefinite leave to remain or settled status) are likely to be subject to the NRPF immigration condition, as are those without current status.
