Persistent poverty and lifetime inequality: the evidence

This report summarises presentations and discussion at a workshop on ‘Persistent Poverty and Lifetime Inequality’ organised by HM Treasury and chaired by John Hills, Director of the ESRC Resarch Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion at the London School of Economics. It took place on 17 and 18 November 1998. A list of presenters is included overleaf. The organisers are very grateful to all participants for their contributions to the debate summarised here. The Treasury decided to hold this workshop to encourage debate and extend understanding of the causes of persistent poverty and inequality of opportunity, drawing on the large amount of new research using panel datasets*. These new datasets make it possible to move from a static analysis of poverty and inequality to a dynamic focus. Looking at the dynamics of poverty and inequality of opportunity enables us to pinpoint the processes and events which lead people to be at greater risk of low income and poorer life chances. These data provide a much firmer underpinning for policies which aim to tackle these problems at source.