Commenting on the Marmot Review: Ten Years On, Dr Wanda Wyporska, Executive Director, The Equality Trust said:

“As we have known for some time and the evidence overwhelmingly proves, inequality is bad for everyone. The deep inequality now entrenched in the UK continues to rip apart the very fabric of our society. Health inequalities are some of the most widely understood and widely reported symptoms of a broken system.

“The Equality Trust supports Professor Marmot’s recommendations, and calls for Government action to go further. We call on the Government to enact the Socio-Economic Duty (Section 1 of The Equality Act 2010), which places a duty on public bodies to pay due regard to the effect of their policies on those who are socially and economically disadvantaged. This would have a transformative effect on those for whom health is one part of the inequalities they face. A version of this has been introduced in Scotland and Wales is planning to introduce similar legislation in April.

“If we tackle inequality, we can ease costs to the state and the personal cost to individuals, as countries with high levels of inequality also see higher levels of poor physical and mental ill health, drug and alcohol addiction, imprisonment, obesity and murder rates, as well as lower levels of educational attainment and trust. We call upon the Government to introduce an inequality reduction strategy and fulfil its international commitment to UN Sustainable Development Goal Number 10 – reducing inequality.”

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Notes to editors

For further comments or to arrange an interview, contact jo.wittams@equalitytrust.org.uk 

The Equality Trust is a registered charity that works to improve the quality of life in the UK by reducing economic inequality. UK income inequality is among the highest in the developed world and evidence shows that this results in poorer mental and physical health, higher violent crime, poorer educational outcomes and lower levels of trust. Inequality affects us all. www.equalitytrust.org.uk