Pre-Budget Report 2007

Background

The Women’s Budget Group welcomes in particular the up-rating of the 16-17 year old rate of Jobseekers Allowance and Income Support. This will help many young mothers and is something the WBG’s members have raised consistently in the past.

We are also pleased with the announced increase in earnings disregard for child maintenance and new PSA to help tackle gender discrimination.

However, we are disappointed with the lack of money set aside to ensure that child poverty is halved by 2010, and measures to remove the entitlement to Income Support for lone parents initially when their child reaches age 12, and eventually age 7. This will overwhelmingly affect women as over 90% of lone parents are women, and the links between women and children’s poverty have been well documented. We are also concerned that the tax proposals made in this CWR/PBR will overwhelmingly benefit men, serving to increase the financial gender gap.

While there is some recognition of gender in the Pre-Budget Report and Spending Review, we still feel that a gender impact assessment of the PBR and CSR is needed more broadly, especially in light of the Gender Duty, which came into force this year. Gender budgeting will not only improve the efficiency of government policies, it can also make a significant contribution towards gender equality and the realisation of women’s rights and would clearly demonstrate that the Government is taking a lead on applying the Gender Duty.

This is an area which the Women’s Budget Group would particularly welcome opportunities to work with HM Treasury.

Read our full Pre-Budget Report 2007.