On Thursday 20 May, the Government will publish the latest figures on the distribution of income and the extent of relative poverty in the UK, which will cover 2008-09, the first full financial year of the recent recession. The IFS will issue a press release commenting on these figures shortly after their release on 20 May. The IFS will then be releasing a fuller report, funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, on the latest figures and recent trends on Friday 21 May. This briefing will assess:

• How average incomes and the gap between rich and poor in the UK changed during the first full financial year of the recent recession;
• Whether the rise in child poverty between 2004-05 and 2007-08 continued for a fourth year, or whether the increased generosity of benefits and tax credits for families with children led child poverty to fall;
• Whether pensioner poverty has fallen during the current recession, just as it did in past recessions.

This report and briefing note will be launched on Friday 21 May at the IFS offices in Ridgmount Street, London at 10.30am. Registration will take place from 10am.