The call – from a country where more than half its population of 34 million people lives on less than $2 (£1.75) a day, on behalf of citizens of one of the world’s richest – was among many concerns expressed before the UN review. UK human rights today. Campaigners said it “spoke volumes” about Britain’s deteriorating reputation for failing to support the millions of people who are struggling and that the lack of a comprehensive poverty strategy has left people without food or pay their bills or rent. Angola’s call follows the UN poverty envoy’s warning last week to British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak that new austerity cuts in this month’s budget could breach the UK’s international human rights obligations and to increase hunger. Olivier de Suter, the UN’s special rapporteur on extreme poverty, said he was “extremely concerned” by possible spending cuts, including reductions in welfare benefits. The Treasury responded by saying its number one priority was financial stability and promised to prioritize the most vulnerable. Dr Koldo Casla, director of the Human Rights Center Clinic at the University of Essex, said the UK had been “told off” several times by the UN. “While it may come as a surprise for a country in the global south to make recommendations to a country in the global north, it is not unusual. But it speaks volumes for the profile the UK is developing,” said Casla. “The UK has developed a reputation as a country that has taken a step backwards in protecting social and economic rights and a country that does not take its international human rights commitments seriously. It used to be known for the opposite.” The Trussell Trust has recorded an 81% increase in demand for food banks over the past five years. Photo: Jonathan Brady/PA Kartik Raj, a researcher at Human Rights Watch (HRW), said: “When a country with a very high rate of poverty asks the UK these kinds of questions, the government should listen rather than dismiss it. “The UK has the highest inflation in four decades and social security support levels are worth less in real terms now than they were in the early 1990s. Benefit levels are inadequate. This leaves many people, on benefits whether they are working or not, in a very precarious situation.” In a submission to the UN ahead of today’s review, which takes place once every five years, HRW urged the UK to develop an anti-poverty strategy. “The value of benefits has declined in real terms and since 2017 the ‘two-child limit’ policy has penalized larger households and increased child poverty,” said Raj. The Trussell Trust has recorded an 81% increase in demand for food banks over the past five years. From April 2021 to March 2022, it distributed 2.1 million emergency food parcels, an increase of 14%. Helen Flynn, head of policy at the charity Just Fair, said: “The cost of living crisis is not something that happened in a vacuum. It comes after 10 years of austerity that hit certain groups and a pandemic that hit certain groups. It is the same kind of groups that are experiencing this time of crisis. We’re not on a level playing field… It becomes a human rights crisis when it happens to certain groups of people.” Alison Garnham, chief executive of the Child Poverty Action Group, said 4 million children in Britain are in poverty: “One million children were lifted out of poverty between 1998 and 2010 when a child poverty strategy was implemented and targets were written into law . Today, with the Child Poverty Act and targets scrapped and no sign of a plan – except in Scotland – almost all progress has been undone and child poverty is at record levels.” Other issues raised before the review included concerns over the UK’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda, immigration detention and plans to replace the Human Rights Act 1998.
