You might have thought that after a decade of government promises to tackle child poverty and social exclusion, a shared objective would be the least we could hope for. Not if the opening paragraphs of a new select committee investigation are to be believed. The House of Commons work and pensions committee introduces its report on child poverty with the comment: ‘We are aware that public sympathy for the poor in the United Kingdom is at a low level.’ It’s constantly changing, adding to the confusion. It’s outdated – it was created for a world of regular, long term work.