Equalities minister: We have been squeamish about class for too long

Áine Fox, Press Association Social Affairs Correspondent

A new unit to improve outcomes for the working class is to be established within Government, as the equalities minister declared: “We have been squeamish about class for too long.”

Bridget Phillipson said social class is a “deep barrier to opportunity” and repeated Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s political mantra that his Government will “bring hope back to communities”.

The plan, first reported by The Times newspaper, is expected to place social class on a par with sex, race and disability for the first time as part of the Government’s equalities agenda.

It is understood that while the unit will seek to address outcomes for the working class overall, there will be a specific focus on improving outcomes for white working class people amid concerns this group has been neglected in recent years.

The Social Mobility Commission, launched in 2010 and previously known as the Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission, is expected to close, with Ms Phillipson telling Parliament its work “will be brought into the heart of Government as we get Britain believing once again”.

That commission was established to assess progress in improving social mobility in the UK and to promote social mobility in England.

Sitting within the Office for Equality and Opportunity, it is thought the new unit will introduce a socio-economic duty legally requiring public bodies to consider how to improve the lives of lower-income families and change the way Government assesses areas of deprivation.

Ms Phillipson told MPs in the Commons on Wednesday: “I’m proud to be standing here as the first ever standalone Cabinet minister for women and equalities.

“And at the heart of this Government’s ambition is to bring hope back to communities. It is the promise that whatever your background, wherever you’re from, ours is a country where you’ll be able to get on, to follow your dreams, and to succeed in life.

“Today, I am therefore announcing a new class unit in Government to deliver on that promise. We have been squeamish about class for too long, yet we know it is a deep barrier to opportunity.”

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