This briefing was produced by the Joint Public Issues Team of the Baptist, Methodist and United Reformed Churches in January 2026. Read Paul Morrison's blog response to the Strategy here. …
poverty
Response to the Spring Statement
JPIT's Paul Morrison responds to the Spring Statement 2025 Poverty and inequality in the UK are on track to increase. Rather than addressing these concerning trends, which cause so much harm to people’s lives, the measures announced in this Spring Statement will exacerbate them. The international …
Looking at the Government Budget
Reflecting on the Budget The Let’s End Poverty campaign, which many churches are supporting, had called for a Budget that prioritised the poorest. This was not it. Everyone in the UK, including the least well off, will benefit from the increased spending on public services, which will certainly …
Challenge Poverty Week
Challenging Poverty The story of the past decade has been of steadily increasing poverty alongside rapid deepening of poverty. As we enter Challenge Poverty Week it is important to understand what we mean by poverty and destitution, what its consequences are and why it can …
Challenge Poverty Week 2024
Challenge Poverty Week takes place every year, usually in October. This year, Challenge Poverty Week England and Wales is 14-20th October, and Challenge Poverty Week Scotland is 7-13th October. Challenge Poverty Week is a time to act together to end poverty, to tell people in power what needs to …
The Beckly Lecture 2023
Human Rights in the light of the Jewish Tradition - Responsibility towards Humanity The Beckly Lecture 2023 took place on Monday 26th June, in Birmingham at the Methodist Conference. You can watch the livestream below. A brief introduction to the lecture: In the midst of escalating …
Dignity For All: Demanding Action to End Poverty this General Election
As Jesus approached the temple in Jerusalem, he had just spent time with Zacchaeus, whose life had been so reordered from his exchange with Jesus that he repaid the money he had cheated through taxation on the poor. In the Gospel of Luke’s ordering of events, it should not be lost on the reader the …
Is Britain suffering from “sick note culture” or from unhelpful rhetoric and tired old policy?
The Prime Minister’s speech and press release on disability benefits last week was depressingly familiar. The formula of “moral mission”, “unsustainable cost”, “toughen-up testing” followed by a bit of “they are gaming the system” has been used repeatedly over the past decade – a decade in which the …
Is it “mental health culture” or hunger that has gone too far?
“Mental health culture has gone too far, says Mel Stride” said a headline in the Daily Telegraph two weeks ago. In the article below it the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions outlined his view that a significant factor in the post-pandemic increase in people not at work due to mental ill …
Homelessness among refugees and how you can help
Homelessness is on the rise this winter, especially among people recently granted asylum in the UK. So last week, JPIT partnered with Housing Justice and Compassionate Communities to hold a webinar exploring how churches can respond. Why is homelessness an increasing issue for …