"Absolutely disgusting" - poverty gets worse in Jersey

Wednesday 14 September 2016

A States' report into low income families shows that one in four households in Jersey are now under the poverty line.

That number was one in five just seven years ago and the report’s findings were panned by Deputy Judy Martin in the States this week, who said the government must re-double its efforts to improve those figures.

She said: “It is now one in four households living on a low income, from one in five just a short time ago. That is absolutely disgusting in this society in Jersey today.”

Deputy Richard Renouf, Chairman of the Health and Social Security Panel, which produced the report, said he agreed that it was a source of considerable embarrassment that the Island seems to be losing the battle against the scourge of low income.

Deputy Renouf said: “I would absolutely agree with the Deputy. We have made recommendations and we hope our report will be subject to discussion by the whole council of Ministers.

“We were alarmed by the growing gap in income inequality, noting that the average disposable income of the poorest section of the community had actually decreased by 17% over a five-year period.

“We were saddened by the evidence of hardship we received. There is a growing reliance on charitable help, including food banks used by people from a wide range of backgrounds. These are not scroungers taking advantage of a hand-out, but typically established working people who are coming as a last resort with heavy hearts.”

Senator Philip Ozouf said the report did not contain any economic methods for getting low income families out of poverty, other than throwing taxpayers’ money at the problem. 

He said: “The inescapable conclusion of this report is to simply spend more money on income support. The report does not contain any economic analysis which actually seeks to give importance to making the market work and getting people into jobs, not just spending more money on the problem.”

Deputy Renouf replied: “If he is criticising me for saying we need to spend more to support vulnerable people then yes, that is the conclusion of our report. There is a level of support which must be given, otherwise social inclusion and cohesion in our society will be damaged.”