BISHOP OF BRADFORD AND WELFARE REFORM

That this House applauds the Bishop of Bradford, the Right Reverand Nick Baines, and his fellow church leaders who have signed an open letter to the Prime Minister on the scandalous impact spending and welfare cuts are having on communities in the north of England; notes that 38,000 children in Bradford are living below the poverty line and that unemployment is continuing to rise; further notes that the so-called welfare reforms mean that the poorest people are getting poorer whilethe richest people are getting richer; and calls on the Prime Minister to follow the advice of the Bishop and his colleagues to stop stigmatising the poor and to take immediate measures to achieve a better balance in the UK economy between the south and north of the country.