Politics

Watch: highlights from Alan Johnson's Fourth Annual Poverty Lecture

"Being poor means being powerless"

June 19, 2017
Alan Johnson gives his lecture in Methodist Central Hall, Westminster. Photo: YouTube Screengrab/Prospect
Alan Johnson gives his lecture in Methodist Central Hall, Westminster. Photo: YouTube Screengrab/Prospect

Alan Johnson MP's fourth annual poverty lecture, hosted by Prospect and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, examined the link between health inequality, economic productivity and how addressing barriers of access to health is key to facilitating social mobility.

"Being poor means being powerless. Those who are poor don’t wish to be defined by their poverty. There is no solidarity amongst the impoverished; no National Union of Poor Workers – but there is the Joseph Rowntree Foundation." —Alan Johnson speaks out in his lecture 
Alan Johnson has served as the Labour MP for Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle since 1997. He has held a variety of cabinet positions in both the Blair and Brown governments; including Health Secretary, Education Secretary, Home Secretary and Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer.