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Theresa May was last night told she should be “ashamed” for failing to tackle poverty, after boasting she would close the class divide.

As figures showed even more people living in dire straits than when the Prime Minister made her vow, her social mobility tsar Alan Milburn sensationally quit – exposing her pledge as a sham.

He resigned as chairman of the Social Mobility Commission in dismay after months of “indecision, dysfunctionality and lack of leadership”.

Former Labour minister Mr Milburn said: “Talking the talk is all very well, but you also need to walk the walk.”

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn told the Daily Mirror: “For the Tories, words are cheap, but their lack of action ruins the life chances of our ­children and neglects our older people.”

(Image: REX/Shutterstock)

All three of Mr Milburn’s fellow commissioners – including former Tory Education Secretary Gillian Shephard – also confirmed they were quitting.

The hammer blow for Mrs May came as figures last night revealed the first increase in child and pensioner poverty for two decades.

On becoming PM last year, Mrs May said it was her mission to tackle “burning injustices” in society and vowed: “We will do everything we can to help anybody, whatever your background, to go as far as your talents will take you.”

But 400,000 more children and 300,000 more pensioners are now living in poverty than in 2012/13, according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

It means 14 million Britons are in poverty, including four million children and 1.9 million pensioners.

Mr Corbyn added: “These figures shame the Tories and our country.

"Such a shocking increase in poverty is a scandal revealing the abject failure of this government to govern for the many.”

(Image: Getty Images Europe)

Lib Dem Leader Vince Cable added: “It’s little surprise that those leading the Government’s Social Mobility ­Commission have quit.”

Mrs May has repeatedly claimed to be building a “country that works for everyone”.

But Mr Milburn said yesterday: “The worst position in ­politics is to set out a proposition that you’re going to heal social divisions and do nothing about it.”

He also said the Prime Minister’s focus on Brexit was at the expense of poor people and meant she “does not have the necessary bandwidth to ensure the rhetoric of healing social division is matched with the reality”.

He added: “I have little hope of the current Government making the progress I believe is necessary to bring about a fairer Britain.”

Mr Milburn, who was appointed by former Deputy PM Nick Clegg in 2012, said little had been done to close the gap between the haves and have-nots.

He fears it will take 80 years to narrow the divide between areas that get the most and least ­youngsters into university.

And he rated Mrs May’s chances of making progress on social mobility as “zero”.

Mr Clegg described his departure as a “huge setback” and added: “This Brexit-fixated government should be ashamed of itself.”

A Government spokesman insisted it was “committed to fighting injustice and ensuring everyone has the ­opportunity to go as far as their talents will take them”.

(Image: AFP)

He added: “We accept there is more to do and that is why we are focusing our efforts in disadvantaged areas.”

Yesterday’s resignations come just days after the Social Mobility Commission warned there would be a rise in extremism unless the economic and social divisions laid bare by the Brexit vote were addressed.

Meanwhile, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation report published last night warned new threats were emerging to the poorest households.

They include rising housing costs, higher food and energy bills, debts and not being able to contribute to a pension.

Chief ­executive Campbell Robb said: “Record ­employment is not leading to lower poverty, changes to benefits and tax credits are reducing incomes and crippling costs are squeezing budgets to breaking point.

“As we prepare to leave the EU, we have to make sure that our country and our economy works for everyone.”

The report’s definition of poverty is when a family has less than 60% of median income after housing costs.

Alison Garnham, of Child Poverty Action, said: “Unless there is action now to protect the living standards of low-income families, we will pile up problems for future generations.”