Child Poverty

A new report has found the number of Australian children living in poverty has reached a "dangerously high level". It says more than one in 10 children are living in relative poverty and one in seven is growing up in a household where no-one has a job.

The organisation says while most Australian children are doing well children born into poorer families face a myriad of problems. These include low birth weight, poor physical growth, failure in school, physical and mental health problems, substance abuse and suicide attempts. It says such children have no political voice and it is time for a campaign to raise community awareness of their plight.

The report shows about three-quarters of a million Australian children are living in poverty.

[ Government Funded News ]

The report follows Treasurer Peter Costello's announcement of a plan to cut welfare for so-called bad parents.