Question
The Secretary of State has made class a central theme of her equalities agenda, but before she can tackle class-based disadvantage, she must surely be able to define it, so what is her definition of class and how will her Department identify who is and who is not working class?
Answer
It is important that we take action on the disadvantage that holds people back by virtue of family background and income. We intend to enact the socioeconomic duty, which will ensure that all public authorities take seriously their responsibility in how they design and deliver public services. I am grateful for the shadow Minister’s interest in this area and look forward to working with her to ensure that we finally take class seriously as a country.50% vibes
Verdict: RED (17/100)
The question asked two things: how the government defines 'class', and how the Department would identify who is or is not working class. The reply only partly addressed the first. It gestured at disadvantage linked to family background and income, and said the government will 'take class seriously', but it gave no definition. It did not address the second at all: it cited the socioeconomic duty, which describes how services should be designed, without saying how anyone would be identified as working class. The person who asked would likely need to ask again for a definition and for a method of identification.
How we got there
| Question item | Coverage | Specificity | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| What is the Secretary of State's definition of class. | Partially Addressed | Hedged | No definition of class is given. Statement 1 gestures at the concept by referring to disadvantage linked to family background and income, but this is a vague description of disadvantage rather than a definition, and statement 4 only says the government will 'take class seriously'. |
| How the Department will identify who is and who is not working class. | Not Addressed | Generic | The reply mentions the socioeconomic duty, which is a mechanism for how public authorities design and deliver services, but it says nothing about how the Department would identify who is or is not working class. |