An assessment of Labour's record on income inequality and poverty
记录了1997至2010年工党执政期间平均收入、贫困和不平等的变化，并与历史其他时期比较，发现儿童和养老金领取者贫困大幅下降，但总体收入不平等加剧，主要源于顶层收入增长，并通过微观模拟揭示税收和福利改革的关键作用。
We document the evolution of average incomes, poverty and inequality over the period of Labour government from 1997 to 2010, comparing these trends with those seen over other periods in recent history. We also relate these changes to Labour's stated distributional objectives, which we argue were clear in relation to the bottom of the income distribution (and absolutely explicit in relation to child poverty), but much less clear in relation to inequality more generally. It is thus perhaps no surprise that we observe substantial falls in child and pensioner poverty alongside increases in overall income inequality, with the latter largely driven by growth in top incomes. We also use micro-simulation techniques to demonstrate the crucial importance of direct tax and benefit reforms in driving the changes observed over this period.