UK regions among the poorest in Europe

Poverty and social exclusion are rising in Britain - and Brits are now more likely than the average European to be at risk of either. New statistics show that 24% of Britain is at risk of poverty - putting us way behind leaders such as France and the Netherlands. The figures also show that an alarming 31% of children in this country are at risk from poverty - compared to around half that rate in Finland, Denmark and Sweden.

Even more worrying, some British regions are at extreme risk - listed among the five poorest areas in Western Europe.%VIRTUAL-SkimlinksPromo%