The Liberal Democrat manifesto will include a commitment to introduce new child poverty measures it has been announced this weekend.

The manifesto will feature the three child poverty targets which were blocked by the Conservatives: reducing relative poverty, reducing gaps in life chances, and reducing entrenched poverty.

The announcement forms part of our ongoing commitment to creating a fairer society enabling everyone to get on in life.

Commenting, Chair of the Liberal Democrat manifesto group, and Education Minister, David Laws said:

“Liberal Democrats know you can build a stronger economy and fairer society at the same time, and will not let political dogma, or headline chasing, damage someone’s opportunity to get on in life.

“Labour’s ‘poverty plus a pound’ strategy made a statistical impact but it left people’s circumstances and future prospects largely unchanged.

“Our changes will change the focus in order to lift young people out of poverty for good by generating real opportunity.

“Rather than spending billions of borrowed pounds on welfare payments designed to move someone from just below, to just above, the official poverty line, we intend to invest in education and skills so people can be work their way out of poverty and towards a future of self-reliance and success.

“The Conservatives have been keen to point up the failings of Labour’s child poverty measures but less keen to replace them with decent, effective and supportive measures.

“Their desire to shrink the state by continuing to cut spending long after the deficit has been cleared trumped their rhetorical commitment to expanding opportunity for young people.

“Clearly a political dividing line on fiscal policy matters more to them than the effort to reduce poverty and expand life chances.”