§ 34. Mr. LloydTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the impact of poverty on health; and if he will make a statement. [34735]
§ Yvette CooperPoverty has a major impact on health. The independent Acheson inquiry into inequalities in health commissioned by the Government in 1997 concluded that many studies and analyses have demonstrated the association between poor health and increasing material disadvantage.
Health inequalities is a priority for the whole Government. Two national targets to reduce health inequalities were announced in February 2001. A public consultation on the delivery of the targets was held in autumn 2001. We are currently undertaking a cross-cutting spending review to establish priorities for action to deliver the targets.