NORTHAVON MP Steve Webb has been shortlisted by a charity for an award to recognise his work to reduce childhood poverty.

Mr Webb received his nomination for the Child Poverty Action Group MP of the Year after a speech in the House of Commons. During the second reading of the Child Poverty Bill he said Parliament should consider how it could do better than reducing the proportion of children in poverty to 10 per cent as that still left a million children in poverty.

He said: "The goal of being about as good as the best European countries is a start but it should not be the end."

Kate Green, the charity's chief executive, said: "Steve has a tremendous understanding of child poverty issues and there are few MPs better at getting down to the complex detail. More than this he's a tremendous advocate of the moral case for ending child poverty in Britain."