To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate how many children would be lifted out of poverty if a 70 per cent. employment rate for lone parents whose youngest child is aged 11 years or over was to be achieved. (124378)

An accurate estimate of the impact on child poverty cannot be given. This is because the employment rate for lone parents with a youngest child aged 11 years or over is currently 69 per cent. The relatively small change involved in raising this to 70 per cent. creates problems of sampling error, preventing accurate estimates of impact.