Number of people in poverty in UK back to pre-pandemic levels

A total of 14.4 million people were estimated to be in relative low income - below 60% of average household income - in the year to March 2022. This was down from 13.4 million in the year to March 2021 but almost back to the number a year previously when 14.5 million were living in poverty as the Covid-19 pandemic hit.

Official statistics released by the Department for Work and Pensions on Thursday showed that 4.2 million children were estimated to be living in poverty in the year to March 2022. This was a rise from 3.9 million the previous year. The figure for the year to March 2020 was 4.3 million.

The fall in the number living in poverty from 2020 to 2021 was largely attributed to the Government's actions during the pandemic which saw a temporary increase in universal credit in autumn 2021 and support provided for people through the furlough scheme.

The charity Action for Children accused ministers of knowing what works, given the action taken during the pandemic, but "choosing not to do it", and said help had been "snatched away" from families.

The organisation's director of policy and campaigns, Imran Hussain, said: "It's astonishing that despite the pandemic, the cost-of-living crisis and the prospect of rising child poverty for years to come, the Government is not targeting help for children in low-income families.

"There is so much more this Government can do in these tough times to stop those with the least from suffering the most." He called for the child element of universal credit to be increased and for the benefit cap to be scrapped.

He said: "Ministers know what works but are choosing not to do it. The £20-a-week increase to universal credit helped cut child poverty in the first year of the pandemic, but that help was snatched away from families 18 months later. "It should increase the child element of universal credit by at least £15 a week and scrap the benefit cap to lift nearly 320,000 children out of poverty.

"They could also break down the big barriers preventing parents from working and protect the living standards of those who can't work or can't work any more than they do already." The figures showed that the estimated number of working age adults in poverty rose to 2.5 million, from 2.1 million the previous year. The figure remains below the year to March 2020 when it was 2.8 million.

When it comes to pensioners, there were 2.1 million estimated to be living in relative low income, back exactly to the pre-pandemic number and up from 1.7 million for the year to March 2021.