The disproportionate impact of cost of living rises on ethnic minorities, especially women, must be addressed
That black, Asian and minority ethnic people in Britain are disproportionately likely to be poor is not news. The relationship between class and race is a strong one, embedded deep in our history. But a new report highlighting the increasing exposure of minority ethnic people, particularly women and children, to the most extreme forms of poverty is cause for alarm. In the current context of heightened risks for low-income households due to rising prices, the prospect of increased racial inequality is especially unwelcome. It means not only unfairness but serious hardship: hunger, destitution, cold and debt.
The findings by the Runnymede Trust show that minority ethnic people are 2.2 times more likely than white people to be in deep poverty – and three times more likely if they are Bangladeshi. Social security cuts over the past decade have hit minority ethnic families harder, and they are expected to benefit less than white families from the government’s energy price cap. While the new measures are expected to reduce fuel poverty rates among white households by 53%, for racial minorities the figure is 35%. The proportion of black children facing food insecurity is 24%. Having stalled since the financial crisis of 2007/08, efforts at reducing these socio-economic disparities have gone into reverse.
