London (CNN) A United Nations report on poverty in the United Kingdom has painted a damning picture of a nation where "compassion" for the poorest has been replaced with a "mean-spirited" approach reminiscent of the 19th century workhouses made infamous by Charles Dickens.

The final in a series of reports from the UN rapporteur on extreme poverty, Philip Alston, said the Conservative government remained in a "state of denial" about the 14 million people living on the breadline, continuing its almost decade-long austerity measures "despite the tragic social consequences."

The UK is the world's fifth largest economy, yet one-fifth of its population lives in poverty, found the report. Almost 40% of children are predicted to be living in poverty in the next two-and-a-half years, it added.

The report follows a two-week fact-finding mission around the UK in November, during which Alston visited nine towns and two cities, speaking to families about the impact of changes to welfare benefits and local government funding.

He discovered people forced to choose between eating meals or heating their homes; children showing up at school with empty stomachs, and teachers taking it on themselves to collect and send food home with the hungry pupils.

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