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Nearly half of Britons 'see background as key to success' 'Treadmill families' going nowhere, says social mobility report
(about 11 hours later)
Nearly half of UK adults believe where people end up in life is mainly down to their background and parentage, a survey has suggested. Middle-income as well as low-income families are being held back by a "deep social mobility problem" in Britain, a report warns.
Fewer than a third (29%) of people questioned by the Social Mobility Commission think the UK is a country where everyone can succeed through talent and hard work. The Social Mobility Commission warns of many "treadmill families running harder and harder but standing still".
One-third of those surveyed said they could not save any money each month. It points to an unfair education system, a two-tier labour market, a regionally imbalanced economy and unaffordable housing.
Commission head Alan Milburn warned of an "us and them", "corrosive" society. Prime Minister Theresa May has promised to tackle social inequalities.
The survey was published as the Social Mobility Commission prepares to put its State of the Nation 2016 report to Parliament on Wednesday morning. The commission's State of the Nation 2016 report, laid before Parliament on Wednesday, says families now can no longer expect to do as well as their parents.
The report is expected to highlight a growing lack of social mobility. It highlights that home ownership is in sharp decline, particularly among young people.
The poll of 1,655 British adults found: 'Core objective'
Mr Milburn, a former Labour MP, said: "Britain has a deep social mobility problem and the growing sense that we have become an 'us and them' society - where a few unfairly hoard power and wealth - is deeply corrosive of our cohesion as a nation. The commission urges the government to commit to building three million homes over the next decade and to expand the sale of public sector land for new homes.
"It is no surprise that populism of right and of left is on the march when a growing number of people feel like they are losing out unfairly. It should also allow targeted housebuilding on green-belt land and modify the starter home initiative to focus on households with average incomes.
"That is why addressing social mobility should be the holy grail of public policy and the cause which unites government, business and communities to action." The commission notes that a child living in one of England's most disadvantaged areas is 27 times more likely to go to an inadequate school than a child in the most advantaged areas.
Call to pay interns And young people from low-income homes are one-third more likely to drop out of education than better-off classmates with similar GCSEs.
Mr Milburn's report, which will be put before MPs on Wednesday morning, is expected to warn of a deep social mobility problem in Britain. The report says the government should have "as its core objective" the narrowing within the next decade of the GCSE attainment gap between poorer children and their better-off classmates by two-thirds.
The report is likely to call for an end to unpaid internships, arguing that work placements lasting more than four weeks should be paid at the minimum wage. It also urges the government to rethink its plans for more grammar schools and more academies.
It will say young people without financial support from their parents are effectively excluded because of their means and are potentially locked out of careers. The report says grammars are "at best, a distraction, and, at worst, a risk to efforts aimed at narrowing the significant social and geographical divides that bedevil England's school system".
The vast majority of internships are said to be in London, where the cost of living is highest. The report notes a growing gap between the generations, warning that those born in the 1980s are the first post-war cohort not to start their working lives on higher salaries than their immediate predecessors.
"The damaging impact of unpaid internships on social mobility cannot be overstated," the commission's report will say. It says the government must work with large employers, local councils and Local Enterprise Partnerships to bring high-quality job opportunities - backed by financial incentives - to Britain's social mobility "coldspots".
Despite some efforts to change the social make-up of the professions, only 4% of doctors, 6% of barristers and 11% of journalists are from working class backgrounds, it will highlight. The report also calls for an end to unpaid internships, arguing that work placements lasting more than four weeks should be paid at the minimum wage.
The commission, in partnership with the Social Mobility Foundation, has launched a social mobility employer index which will benchmark firms' efforts in areas such as recruitment, selection and progression. The commission says the problem is not just social, but also geographical, with a widening divide between the big cities - particularly London - and the many towns and counties being "left behind economically and hollowed-out socially".
Theresa May took over as prime minister in July with a promise to lead a "one nation" government that works for all not just the "privileged few". It says that in London, the number of top-end occupational jobs has increased by 700,000 in the past 10 years compared with just under 56,000 in the north-east of England.
'Deeply corrosive'
The report warns: "The growing sense that we have become an us and them society - where a few unfairly hoard wealth and power - is deeply corrosive of our cohesion as a society.
"The EU referendum in June this year exposed deep divides that go well beyond the box that people crossed.
"Public concern - even anger - about issues of identity, immigration and inequality found a voice on 23 June and a target to aim at.
"Of the 65 parts of the country we identified as being social mobility coldspots - those with the poorest education and employment prospects - only three areas voted to remain in the EU."
Other concerns raised by the report include:
The chair of the Social Mobility Commission, Alan Milburn, said the rungs on the social mobility ladder were growing further apart.
"It is becoming harder for this generation of struggling families to move up," he said.
"Whole sections of society and whole tracts of Britain feel left behind.
"As the EU referendum result showed, the public mood is sour and decision-makers have been far too slow to respond."
Theresa May took over as prime minister in July with a promise to lead a "one-nation" government that worked for all, not just the "privileged few".
Mrs May insisted that the Conservatives would "do everything we can to help anybody, whatever your background, to go as far as your talents will take you".Mrs May insisted that the Conservatives would "do everything we can to help anybody, whatever your background, to go as far as your talents will take you".
Mr Milburn said the commission applauded her determination to further social progress but warned this was a "big ambition" and should be the "holy grail" of public policy.
A government spokeswoman said ministers would consider the recommendations in the report.
"As the prime minister said on the steps of Downing Street, this government is committed to fighting injustice wherever it arises and ensuring that everyone in our country has the opportunity to go as far as their talents will take them."
The report was published as a survey of 1,655 British adults for the commission found nearly half believed where people ended up in life was mainly down to their background and parentage.
Fewer than a third (29%) of people questioned thought Britain was a country where everyone could get as far as their talent and hard work would take them.
One-third of those surveyed said they could not save any money each month.
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