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New Joseph Rowntree report on public attitudes to poverty
Findings of yesterday’s report, which looks at attitudes and how they have changed since 2008, include -
- harder views towards poverty remain, but the economic circumstances of recent years have encouraged some to reconsider both who might be affected by poverty and its causes;
- participants considered poverty to be about more than just income. They also questioned whether the term ‘poverty’ was appropriate in the UK context;
- JRF’s needs-based definition was viewed positively, although participants still felt that this did not fully encapsulate a life in poverty; and
- although the idea of the ‘undeserving poor’ created tension, people’s deeper attitudes were that personal choices are rarely the root cause of poverty.
http://www.jrf.org.uk/publications/public-attitudes-towards-poverty