STOP THE WAR ON THE POOR CAMPAIGN

That this House welcomes the Stop the War on the Poor initiative which commemorates Martin Luther King's Poor People's Campaign launched just before his assassination on 4 April 1968; further welcomes the RISE Out of Poverty Act now before the US Congress, which would make the elimination of child poverty the priority of welfare policy and recognises the caring work of mothers and other carers; believes that the UK would benefit from a similar policy since four million UK children, one in three, are living in poverty; notes that Dr King condemned the Vietnam War, accusing Congress of hostility to the poor by spending military funds with alacrity and generosity; further notes that he supported mothers' right to welfare, a living wage and a guaranteed income for all; rejects US-style workfare as it forces unwaged carers to work for their benefits, undermining both the minimum wage and pay equity; and reaffirms humanity's assumption that every child is precious to the whole society, and that every primary carer is entitled to resources and support for their life-saving, life-enhancing caring work.