Blacks and Asians twice as likely to live in poverty

Four in 10 black and Asian people in Britain live in poverty, twice the rate among white people, research has revealed.

Despite improving academic performance and qualifications, they still face prejudice in job interviews and are paid lower wages than their white counterparts.

In a series of reports published today, the academic think-tank the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF), discloses that 65 per cent of Bangladeshis, 55 per cent of Pakistanis, 45 per cent of Black Africans and 30 per cent of Indians and Black Caribbeans are in poverty. The overall poverty rate for ethnic minorities is 40 per cent, compared with 20 per cent for white Britons.

Almost half of all black and Asian children are growing up poor, including a staggering 70 per cent of Bangladeshi youngsters.

The JRF reports show that only 20 per cent of Bangladeshis, 30 per cent of Pakistanis and 40 per cent of Black Africans of working age are in full-time employment, compared with more than 50 per cent of white British people of working age.

Disproportionate numbers of ethnic minority workers are in low-paid jobs. Half of Bangladeshi workers, one-third of Pakistanis and one-quarter of black Africans are earning less than £6.50 an hour, the JRF discovered. As a result, 60 per cent of Bangladeshi and 40 per cent of Pakistani families in which at least one adult is working face poverty, compared with only 10 to 15 per cent of white Britons.

Its research concludes that people from ethnic-minority groups do not receive the same rewards as white British people with equivalent academic qualifications such as degrees.

Julia Unwin, the director of the JRF, said: "We need an urgent rethink from government and employers, so that minority ethnic groups don't miss out on opportunities in the workplace."