Only the Republic of Ireland and the US suffer higher levels of poverty than the UK.

The UK was ranked 14th - behind countries such as Germany, Japan and Australia - in the United Nations Development Programme's poverty index.

More than a fifth of UK adults are considered functionally illiterate while 13.5% were living below the recognised level of the poverty line - half the median personal disposable income.

After taking in to account life expectancy, knowledge deprivation and social exclusion, the report says 15% of the UK population live in poverty.

It also says 9% of Britons are not expected to live to 60.

The gap between rich and poor is growing across the world, the report says, with 20% of the world's population consuming 86% of goods and services.