By stewartb

In its news report of the JRF’s statement on the election manifestos of political parties in Scotland regarding poverty, The National newspaper quotes the social justice spokesperson for the British Labour Party in Scotland. This demonstrates yet again the party’s political hypocrisy.

On poverty reduction, Claire Baker states: “The SNP’s shameful lack of progress over the last two decades has made this all the more challenging and all the more urgent.” And: “Scottish Labour is determined to tackle poverty at its root, support the next generation and make life more affordable.”

Fortunately we can assess the Labour Party’s credentials for governing successfully and addressing poverty with just devolved powers. We can call on the research findings of the very same JRF to benchmark ‘progress’ in Wales governed from Cardiff since the advent of devolution by Labour. Has Labour in Wales ‘tackled poverty at its root’ as Ms Baker promises Scotland? Has Labour in Wales succeeded in avoiding a ‘shameful lack of progress’? In short, it has NOT!

From the JRF (10 June 2025) ‘Poverty in Wales 2025 – Very deep poverty is rising in Wales. More people using food banks, unable to heat their homes, or living in temporary accommodation, means the human cost and impact on public services is huge.’

The JRF notes: ‘Twenty years ago, JRF’s first report on poverty in Wales found a sustained and welcome decrease in poverty since the mid-1990s. Its latest analysis brings no such good news, with headline rates of poverty flatlining in the 2 decades since. That is bad enough, but most worrying of all is the rise in very deep poverty. Today, almost half of all people in poverty in Wales have incomes so low that they are in this extreme situation: this means more people forced to use food banks, unable to heat their homes or living in temporary accommodation. The human cost of poverty, especially deep poverty, and its impact on public services are huge. (my emphasis)

‘Underlying this 21st-century social failure are many years of deep cuts to social security, along with a shortage of decent jobs and affordable housing. …’

The JRF adds: ‘Poverty matters. It is in every community in Wales, amongst people of all ages, all backgrounds and in all types of families. It blights lives and costs the public purse. It is a moral outrage.’ And: ‘There has been little progress in reducing poverty in Wales over the past 20 years, with poverty rates consistently hovering around 21–22%.’ Adding: ‘Alarmingly, life expectancy in the most deprived areas has declined since 2011–13.’

Is Ms Baker, are her colleagues in the Labour Party in Scotland unaware of the above? Or are they deliberately seeking to deceive voters, confident that the MSM in Scotland will not call out their duplicity?

From the JRF (February 10, 2026): ’Next Welsh Government must drive down poverty in Wales’ (https://www.jrf.org.uk/social-security/next-welsh-government-must-drive-down-poverty-in-wales )

‘Poverty levels in Wales are some of the highest anywhere in the UK. For example, almost 1 in 3 children in Wales are growing up in poverty. This shocking situation cannot persist ..’

‘Our report, Poverty in Wales 2025, sets out the extent to which people in Wales are experiencing hardship. The story is not a good one, with 22% of people in Wales (around 700,000 people) experiencing relative poverty, with little change in the last 20 years. Underlying that is the fact that poverty has deepened in Wales — with now nearly half of all people in poverty in very deep poverty, compared to a third in the mid-1990s.’

‘The story of the period of devolution, then, is that Wales has sustained some of the highest rates of poverty in the UK.’

This is important information – it’s not whataboutery – in the context of a legitimate assessment of the credentials of the British Labour Party and the worth of its promises to voters in Scotland. Given the Party’s track record in government in Cardiff over decades, what credibility can it have now in Scotland? Or is the truth that devolved powers are simply insufficient to counter the harms that come to Wales (and to Scotland) as a consequence of being within this failing, Westminster-governed Union?

Afterthought:

The JRF report on poverty in Wales also has this acknowledgement:‘In many ways it is understandable that the current Welsh Government (and their predecessors and no doubt successors) will point the finger at the UK Government’s powers to impact the standard of living of people in Wales. With significant control over the social security system, the tax system and employment rights and responsibilities, it is undeniable that decisions taken in London have significant impacts on people across Wales as well as on the spending power of the Welsh Government.’ (my emphasis)It seems that Unionists in government in Cardiff accept this whilst Unionists in opposition in Holyrood seek to deny the ‘undeniable’!