Early intervention "crucial" to tackle social exclusion - PM
5 September 2006
More help is needed for people who are the hardest to reach in society, Tony Blair has said, so that no-one is left behind - whatever their background.
In a major speech to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation in York, the third in his Our Nation's Future series, the PM reflected on social exclusion and particularly those with multiple, entrenched problems.
Social exclusion can happen through a combination of unemployment, discrimination, low income or ill-health.
Early intervention was crucial, he stressed, so that families from dysfunctional homes could be offered support before their children "go off the rails".
But this was not about the nanny state or interfering with normal family life.
The PM said that lots of progress had been made in recent years in reducing child poverty and improving public services for the less well-off.
However, these successes have made the "persistent exclusion of a small minority" more obvious.
Action was needed, Mr Blair concluded, because the alternative was:
"That these children, these adults, these families are left behind, abandoned, when they need to be helped."
Social Exclusion minister Hilary Armstrong will launch an Action Plan next week with details on how the government intends to tackle the problem.
Background to social exclusion lecture
Mr Blair has praised a number of innovative projects around the country which are tackling social exclusion head-on and offering early intervention and help for families in the most need.
In the run-up to the lecture the PM consulted expert papers. At a policy seminar in Chequers last week, some of the authors discussed their work with him.
