Brown’s Britain

In the past twenty four hours there has been a flurry of information released from Government departments that paint the picture of the Britain Brown and Madelson have given us:

Latest figures from the DCSF reveal the number of children living in poverty has risen sharply, the Guardian reports today. Departmental figures show that the number qualifying for free school meals increased by 21,000 to a total of 1,095,430. The increase comes despite a fall in school-age population with London having the highest proportion of free school meals.

DCSF figures revealed to day show that children who speak English as their first language are in a minority in almost one in ten local authority areas, the Daily Telegraph reports. The statistics reveal that English is not the first language for 900,000 schoolchildren. London accounted for most of the 14 council areas where more than half of primary school pupils spoke English as a second language, the paper adds.

The Department of Health has announced there was a 52 per cent rise in the number of obesity operations carried out by the health service between May 2008 and April this year, the Daily Telegraph informs today. Figures released by the NHS Information Centre have found there were 4,324 such operations carried out in the 12 months to April, up from 2,838 the previous year.

The number of people unemployed is expected to reach 2.5 million, the Independent reports today. Almost one million of those under the age of 25 make up the jobless figure, one fifth of the nation's young people. The figures will show that overall unemployment has risen by over 800,000 in a year, a 50 per cent increase, the paper adds. The ONS figures will also reveal a growing casualisation of the UK work force.

An official inquiry into unemployment and benefit figures has been prompted by suspicions that many middle class people who have been made redundant are not claiming benefits, the Daily Telegraph reports today. Three quarters of a million people who have lost their jobs during the recession have not appeared in official statistics and Work and Pensions Secretary Yvette Cooper has launched a review to find out why. It is believed that many people have chosen to live off redundancy pay or savings rather than signing on for benefits. Another theory suggests those who have lost their jobs may have been second earners, many of them women.

More than 300 children a day are having their DNA taken by the police to be added to the national database, the Daily Mail informs today. 412,670 youngsters under 15 already have their genetic profiles stored.

Banks are making the highest profits on mortgages since records began the Daily Telegraph leads with today. The difference between the interest rate that banks charge and the rate at which they borrow is the biggest since the Bank of England started collecting data 15 years ago. The Bank of England statistics show that the average two-year fixed rate for new mortgage customers climbed to 4.46 per cent during July, with the average five-year fixed deal hitting 5.7 per cent. According to analysis by the chief UK economist at Citigroup, the difference between these rates and the rate banks charge each other is at a record margin. Banks are making a full 2 percentage points of profit on fixed rate mortgages – the first time this has happened, the paper states. (Source: DeHavilland)