Archbishop Sentamu urges government to 'slay' giants of inequality, youth unemployment

Dr John Sentamu

The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu has today called for the Government to stand by its pledge to level out inequality in Britain and has said that income inequality and youth unemployment are giants that must be “slayed”.

Speaking in the Independent on Sunday, the Archbishop said: “Income inequality and youth unemployment should be added to William Beveridge’s Five Giants – Want, Disease, Ignorance, Squalor and Idleness. In our bones we all know that the gap between the rich and poor is growing and we need to slay these two new giants”.

The Archbishop points to David Cameron’s speech in November 2009 quoting The Spirit Level research, which highlights how inequality damages community life and the relationships which hold us together. The research shows a wide range of social problems are more common in societies with larger income differences between the rich and the poor and that Britain sadly is among the more unequal of countries.

The Archbishop considers the issues of mental illness becoming more common, the rate of self-harm amongst teenage girls rising, binge drinking, record personal debt levels and the effects of these on diminishing quality of life.

The Archbishop’s article, published in today's Independent on Sunday, follows his call for a change of attitude to excessively high incomes and the need to tackle tax avoidance in order to bring about a more caring and equal society.

To read the Archbishop’s call to establish a fairer society, please visit: www.archbishopofyork.org/articles.php/2238/archbishops-call-to-re-establish-a-fairer-society