The dignity and well-being of all local residents matters to Labour. We cannot claim progress while some are left behind in poverty.

The Conservative Government has reduced benefits for the poorest by £1000 a year. The current Lib Dem Council does not even have an anti-poverty strategy.

With soaring costs of living, energy prices shooting up and National Insurance hikes hitting, more families than ever are facing tough choices of which bills to pay.

Over 10% of children in South Cambs are entitled to Free School Meals. It’s one of the fastest rising rates in the country. Labour County Councillors delivered our pledge for meals to continue in the holidays. And to help struggling families with everyday costs.

The structural causes of poverty are lack of well-paid secure work, rapidly rising living costs, inadequate social security, and racial injustice. For real reform we need a different Government. But there’s still plenty that a Labour South Cambs Council can change. We will tackle the root causes of poverty and address its effects.

We will create and implement the first-ever South Cambs anti-poverty strategy. We will involve people living on low incomes, public agencies and voluntary groups. Our anti-poverty strategy will include health inequality and build on the Labour Cambs Mayor’s public health focus.

A Labour Council will:

★ Become Real Living Wage accredited. A permanent commitment to pay Council staff and contractors enough to live on. We’ll encourage local businesses to do the same.

★ Accelerate home insulation and install eco-heating pumps. Take action against private landlords renting poorly insulated properties (which the current Council hasn’t done since Minimum Energy Standards were introduced).

★ Sign up to the ‘Right to Food’ campaign to end the scandal of food banks.

★ Tackle digital exclusion through digital champions and projects to support low-income residents to acquire skills. Run sessions including for tenants, leaseholders, and in sheltered housing.

★ Provide Poverty advisors. Expand the welfare advice services that Labour Councillors made sure are funded.

★ Work with organisations helping with basic needs, preferring cash-first approaches to food insecurity.

★ Address period poverty by providing free sanitary products in community centres (e.g. ‘blue bag’ at Cambourne Soul).