As MPs gather in Westminster for today’s spending review, I will be holding a debate on child poverty and No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF). The discussion could not be more urgent. The debate comes as the government announces its spending envelope for the next few years, with questions over its ability to deliver its much-anticipated child poverty strategy. At the same time, there is a growing crisis that remains largely ignored: the hidden poverty faced by migrant children in the UK.
Recent research has revealed the scale of this injustice. There are an estimated 1.5 million children in the UK living in poverty in families with migrant parents — accounting for more than a third of all children in poverty. Shockingly, 46% of migrant children live in poverty, nearly double the rate for other children. Yet despite this, the NRPF policy — a blanket ban on access to the social safety net for most migrants — remains largely absent from conversations on poverty and inequality. This silence must end.
NRPF conditions create a perfect storm: high living costs and visa fees, low incomes and no access to welfare or housing support. In this context, it’s no surprise that there is wide-reaching evidence showing its link to destitution and homelessness. Children in affected households experience food insecurity, overcrowded housing, barriers to education, and serious mental and physical health risks. These are not isolated cases — they are symptoms of a broken system that is failing some of the most vulnerable members of our society.
If we want to meet the intent of the Child Poverty Strategy, we must confront the fact that millions of people — around 4 million, including hundreds of thousands of children — are locked out of support solely because of their immigration status. Child poverty doesn’t check passports — neither should the strategy.
Not only is NRPF a harmful policy, it has also been ruled unlawful on multiple accounts. It places enormous pressure on local authorities, who are often left footing the bill for emergency support. It also runs counter to any long-term integration strategy. By pushing migrant families into poverty, NRPF restricts their ability to work, participate, and contribute fully to society.
In this context, recent announcements in the government’s immigration white paper are particularly concerning. Proposals to extend the qualifying period for British citizenship to 10 years will lock more families into prolonged NRPF status, compounding deprivation and delaying access to stability. It is a short-sighted move that undermines integration and creates an ever-growing population of second-class residents — many of them children. I think we should think again on this.
We can all agree that child poverty has no place in the 21st century, in one of the richest countries in the world. Migrant children should not be paying the price for ‘destitution by design’ policies. Labour must change the story and take the necessary steps to alleviate poverty for all children in the UK — not just those with British passports.
Politics.co.uk is the UK’s leading digital-only political website. Subscribe to our daily newsletter for all the latest news and analysis.
