To ask the Minister for Communities (i) whether he has been engaging with the Department for Work and Pensions in relation to their work on developing a new poverty metric; and (ii) whether consideration has been given to developing and implementing a new poverty measure in Northern Ireland.

(i) The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is developing a new Below Average Resources (BAR) poverty metric in collaboration with stakeholders, including DfC. My officials are engaging with DWP on the potential new measure as part of an Experimental Statistics Senior Steering Group and an Expert Advisory Group.

(ii) The UK Below Average Resources (BAR) publication will contain comparisons between England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. As the project concludes, DfC Analytics Division will engage with key stakeholders to consider whether it is appropriate to produce a Northern Ireland version of the Below Average Resources report alongside the UK publication.