Section 1: The 2010 target
8.Section 1 places a duty on the Secretary of State to lay before Parliament a report on whether the 2010 target has been met. The report must be laid as soon as reasonably practicable after the end of the 2010 target year (that is, the financial year beginning with 1 April 2010) and no later than 30 June 2012 (subsection (1)). If the 2010 target has not been met the report must explain why this is the case (subsection (5)).
9.The 2010 target corresponds to that set out in Public Service Agreement 9, to halve child poverty in the UK in relation to a 1998/99 baseline so that 1.7 million children or fewer live in qualifying households falling within the relevant income group for the purposes of section 3 (subsection (2)).