One in three families in England could not pay their rent or mortgage for more than a month if they lost their job, a study for the charity Shelter suggests.

High housing costs and a lack of personal savings are cited by the charity as reasons for this.
The online survey by pollsters YouGov in July questioned 1,581 people in working families with children.
"Strong protections" are in place for "those who fall on difficult times," a government spokesman commented.
The spokesman said: "We are introducing the National Living Wage, increasing the personal tax allowance and giving the next generation choice and flexibility in their savings, including the Help to Save scheme for people on low incomes.
"We are continuing to spend around £90 billion a year on working age benefits to ensure a strong safety net for the most vulnerable.
"And for those who do fall on difficult times, there are strong protections in place to guard against the threat of homelessness, and ensure we don't return to the bad old days when homelessness in England was nearly double what it is today."
The online YouGov survey questioned 8,381 adults, including 1,581 members of working families with children.
It concluded that 37% (585) of such families would be unable to cover their housing costs for more than one month with no job, while 23% (364) said they would be unable to pay their housing costs at all.
Some 48% (759) of families in the survey named the cost of housing as the biggest drain on their budget, the charity reported.
"These figures are a stark reminder that sky-high housing costs are leaving millions of working families stretched to breaking point, and barely scraping by from one pay cheque to the next," Shelter chief executive Campbell Robb said.
What kind of life can you live on £7.20 an hour?
How much of a savings buffer do people need?
'Sky-high' rental hotspots across England revealed
Mr Robb said the government had a "real chance to show working families they're on their side, by protecting and improving our welfare safety net".
A single mother of two children, named only as Lou, told researchers that although she was working full-time as a complex needs carer, and has moved into a small flat, she still finds keeping up with the rent every month a struggle.
She said: "I'm working hard, but it still makes me feel like a failure. I recently changed jobs and hit a rough patch when I thought I wouldn't be able to pay the rent.
"An employer had given me some work and didn't tell me that my hours wouldn't be guaranteed, I lost a chunk of my income all of a sudden, and very nearly lost my home. It was really scary.
"There's never a cushion. You'd think if you were working you'd be able to save a little bit every month, but it's just not a possibility when just paying for the basics is so expensive."


A pharmacist jailed for murdering her neighbour can introduce fresh evidence as part of a bid to clear her name.

Maire Rankin, 81, was found dead at her home in Newry, County Down, on Christmas Day 2008.
Karen Walsh was later found guilty of her murder.
The Court of Appeal ruled her lawyers can introduce evidence to support claims someone else may have been in the victim's home shortly after she was killed.
Senior judges granted permission on Thursday for Ms Walsh's legal team to rely on expert opinion that three telephone calls made to Mrs Rankin's house within 45 minutes of the latest estimated time of her death were probably answered.
Lawyers for Ms Walsh, 48, argue that the material was not properly made available at her trial and could undermine the prosecution case.
She is seeking to overturn her conviction for murdering Mrs Rankin in the early hours of Christmas Day 2008.
The 81-year-old victim was found dead in the bedroom of her Dublin Road home.
Mrs Rankin, a devout Catholic, had suffered up to 15 broken ribs and been beaten with a crucifix given to her as a wedding gift.
Evidence of a sexual assault - thought to have been carried out to cover the killer's tracks - was also discovered.
Ms Walsh is currently serving a minimum 20-year prison sentence.
She had worked in Dublin but often stayed at a house she owned next door to the victim.
During her trial, the prosecution claimed she arrived at Mrs Rankin's home already drunk and with a bottle of vodka.
It was alleged that the mother-of-one then flew into a rage and attacked the pensioner after being chastised about her drinking and told to go home to her young son.
Despite being found guilty of murder Ms Walsh has continued to protest her innocence.
As part of her appeal defence lawyers have obtained a telecommunications expert whose opinion is that three calls to Mrs Rankin's in a 15-minute period either side of 10:00 GMT on Christmas morning were answered.
Ms Walsh's lawyer contended that the phone records held within a police intelligence unit were not properly disclosed at trial.
Seeking permission to have the material admitted into the appeal, he claimed it potentially undermined the prosecution case that no-one but his client was in the victim's home that morning.
A prosecuting lawyer claimed the new evidence was of no help to Ms Walsh because it was impossible to prove whether the calls were answered.
He said that the victim's daughter Brenda gave evidence at trial about making several calls to her mother that morning that went unanswered.
Calling for the defence to spell out their case, the prosecution lawyer said: "What exactly are you alleging? You can't just float things and say that looks very mysterious."
Responding to his query, appeal court judge Lord Justice Gillen said: "Somebody was in the house other than the accused and could that person have been the person responsible for the murder? That's what their case is."
The three judges, headed by Lord Chief Justice Sir Declan Morgan, ruled that it was in the interests of justice to admit the evidence.
With the telecommunications expert now due to testify at the appeal later this month, Sir Declan said: "As matters stand the (his) evidence needs to take into account the trial evidence, including that of Brenda Rankin that she made a call at or about the material time which was not answered.
"If there's no challenge to that, as there is not at this stage, the expert will have to deal with that as a fact which is an accepted fact."


The Ministry of Defence has opposed plans for an 18-turbine wind farm in the Borders due to fears over its impact on a seismic monitoring station.

Residents have also objected to Partnerships for Renewables' Cloich Forest scheme near Eddleston.
The company says the project could generate more than 60MW of electricity and up to Â£7m for the local community.
However, the MoD has concerns about its effects on the monitoring station at Eskdalemuir in Dumfries and Galloway.
It is used to monitor for nuclear test ban treaty breaches.
The station is sensitive to turbine noise and a tolerance limit set for all wind farms within a 50km radius of the site has already been reached.
The Cloich Forest project lies just within that zone.
Last month a 10-turbine scheme near Moffat was refused by Dumfries and Galloway Council amid similar concerns.


Favourite Air Force Blue scored a stirring win in the Dewhurst Stakes at Newmarket for trainer Aidan O'Brien.

The 4-6 favourite powered to victory by three and a quarter lengths from 20-1 chance Massaat.
It was a convincing victory for the colt, owned by the Coolmore Stud team, with Emotionless a disappointment for the rival Godolphin stable.
Jockey Ryan Moore indicated Air Force Blue was probably the best two-year-old horse he had ever ridden.
Meanwhile, 50-1 outsider Grumeti, trained by Alan King, won the Cesarewitch Handicap in a photo finish from Oriental Fox.
Winning rider Adam Beschizza was completing a 764-1 autumn double, having won the Cambridgeshire Handicap on Third Time Lucky.
Air Force Blue is now favourite for next year's 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket, at odds ranging from 6-4 to evens.
"Probably at this stage, I'm struggling to think of any better [juvenile] I've ridden. He felt like there's more to come," said Moore.


Sir Richard Branson has responded to an appeal by a British drugs smuggler on death row in Indonesia.

Lindsay Sandiford, 58, from Cheltenham, who is facing death by firing squad, wrote to Sir Richard after he spoke out against recent executions.
She asked him to "help promote the fundraising effort my supporters have begun to pay for a final appeal against the death penalty".
Sir Richard said he was following Ms Sandiford's case closely.
"I strongly believe that the death penalty is a cruel and inhumane punishment, and every execution is one execution too many," the Virgin Group founder said.
"We are following Lindsay Sandiford's and other cases closely and fully support efforts that are currently underway to aid her appeal."
Ms Sandiford has been in jail since 2012 after arriving in Bali from Thailand carrying drugs with a street value of Â£1.6m.
Last week, she paid tribute on her Facebook account to Myuran Sukumaran and her "good friend" Andrew Chan, two of the eight prisoners who were shot dead last month.
Ms Sandiford, who is originally from Redcar in Teesside, said she could be "executed at any time" as she did not have "any proper legal representation" during her trial.
She appealed to Sir Richard to use his "influence and position to speak out" on behalf of people on death row.
Another appeal against Ms Sandiford's conviction due to be put before the Indonesian Supreme Court was being prepared, her lawyer has said.
A campaign to raise funds for her appeal has raised just over 16,200 New Zealand dollars (Â£7,975).


Former JLS member Oritse Williams has denied allegations he raped a fan in a hotel room after a concert.

The 30-year-old singer was arrested on 2 December, the morning after performing a gig at the Gorgeous club in Wolverhampton.
West Midlands Police said it was called to a hotel in the city at 07:45 GMT after a 20-year-old woman claimed she had been raped and sexually assaulted.
Another man, aged 29, was also arrested on suspicion of sexual assault.
Both men have been bailed until February, pending further inquiries, police said.
Mr Williams' management 10 Worlds Music, said in a statement: "All we wish to say at this time is that Oritse denies the allegations against him.
"The matter is in the hands of the police and it would be totally wrong for us to comment any further."
The singer enjoyed chart success with the JLS after featuring on the X-Factor in 2008.
Mr Williams then began a solo career when the pop group disbanded three years ago.


This week of political cross dressing goes on.

David Cameron tried to re-brand the Conservatives as the party of working people - the day after Ed Miliband claimed that Labour was the party of economic responsibility.
It is not just the language that has changed it is the tone.
Today the Tory leader tried to re-discover the rhetorical "sunshine" he was once associated with - with his promise to deliver "The Good Life" in a country which he claimed was on the "brink of something special".
So, gone is the "age of austerity". Gone too the warnings of red flashing lights on the dashboard. Gone all talk of difficult decisions.
In their place comes not one but three give-aways - an extension of the right to buy, a doubling of free childcare and a promise that tax allowances will rise to ensure that the minimum wage is tax free. This after a series of others - not least the pledge to cut inheritance tax and spend at least £8 billion a year on the NHS.
What today's Conservative manifesto does not spell out is who will pay. Which budgets will be cut (police, colleges, councils…)? Which benefits will be stopped? Whose taxes will be raised?
David Cameron and George Osborne used to warn against unfunded spending commitments. They are gambling that their reputation as protectors of the public purse is good enough to risk looking like they can't wait to get spending again.
There is, of course, a reason the Tories and Labour are trying so hard to look like each other. It is because the two big parties are stuck in the opinion polls. Neither shows any sign of breaking away. Neither can be confident of getting enough support to get a majority government.
The question after this manifesto launch is raised by David Cameron's own rhetoric - do you really see him as leader of the workers' party? Do you believe that the Tories can deliver the Good Life?


Sheffield United have signed Chesterfield winger Jay O'Shea on loan until the end of the season.

The 28-year-old Irishman scored 40 goals in 197 appearances for the Spireites after joining them from MK Dons in January 2013.
The former Birmingham City trainee will be a free agent in the summer.
Meanwhile, the Blades have completed the signing of Bradford striker James Hanson, 29, for an undisclosed fee on a deal until June 2020.
Hanson scored 77 goals in 281 league appearances for the Bantams after joining from non-league side Guiseley in 2009.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page or visit our Premier League tracker here.


Nine British-Sudanese medical students and doctors who have travelled to Syria were motivated by humanitarian concerns, their parents have said.

The nine were studying in Sudan but it is feared they are now in areas of Syria controlled by Islamic State militants.
Their families said they did not know their children's whereabouts but they had "excellent moral capabilities".
They urged Britain, Turkey and Sudan to work for their children's safe return.
The nine are believed to have entered Syria from Turkey more than a week ago.
They have been named as Ismail Hamadoun, Tamer Ahmed Ebu Sebah, Mohammed Osama Bedir, Hisham Muhammed Fadlallah, Sami Ahmed Khader, Nada Sami Khader, Lena Maumoon Abdul Qadir, Rowan Kamal Zine El Abidine and Tasneem Suleyman Huseyin.
"Our sons and daughters have always been participating in humanitarian and good cause social work," the families said in a written statement.
"They have come to Turkey willingly to offer voluntary medical help to those refugees who are in need of medical care on Turkey's borders."
They said they knew their children had arrived in Turkey, but said they had disappeared.
The families also called on the British, Turkish and Sudanese authorities to "enforce, speed up and co-ordinate more effective measures to ensure the safety of our children".
There have been fears that the medics, all in their late teens or early 20s, had been radicalised or recruited by Islamic State militants.
But BBC Turkey correspondent Mark Lowen said the families were sure this was not the case.
Speaking from Gaziantep in southern Turkey, where the families are awaiting news, our correspondent said the parents had received messages from their children but were not sure they were genuine.
Chris Staley, head of Wisbech Grammar in Cambridgeshire, said he hoped former pupil Lena Maumoon Abdul Qadir would return to her family.
He told the BBC that she was "furiously bright", "very normal" and a "very focused young lady".
"We would want to see Lena back in the arms of her family, there's no doubt about that," he said.


The World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) and its president, Sir Craig Reedie, are under increasing pressure over the handling of the Russian doping crisis.

Russian athletes are banned from international competition after the country was accused of orchestrating a state-sponsored doping programme.
Wada has already been criticised for being slow to investigate the claims.
Now the BBC has seen documents that suggest Briton Reedie may have failed to act with due speed and rigour.
A Wada spokesman said all decisions taken by its president "are in the interest of the agency and the clean sport movement".
The BBC has obtained a copy of a hand-written note by Reedie, apparently passed to Sergey Bubka, the vice-president of athletics' world governing body the IAAF, on 1 August, 2015.
Both men, who are members of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), were attending an IOC session in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The note, written on Wada-headed paper, appears to tip off Bubka that trouble was brewing for athletics in the shape of a new documentary by the German anti-doping journalist Hajo Seppelt.
It signs off with the message: "Hope no more damage will be done. Craig."
The ARD documentary made allegations of widespread blood doping.
The BBC showed the note to Jack Robertson, Wada's chief investigator from 2011 to 2016 and a key figure in the organisation's independent commission into Russian doping and corruption allegations.
"Considering this note is in fact penned by Craig Reedie, it is extremely disappointing but not surprising," said Robertson.
"If he wrote these words then, to me, this further illustrates his overall loyalties clearly rest with the national and international federations - in this case the IAAF - and not the protection of clean athletes' rights.
"His mindset should have been an eagerness to learn if any further revelations were unearthed… showing further potentially valuable evidence of systematic doping and criminal misconduct.
"Instead, this note shows he is more concerned about further embarrassment to an IAAF vice-president than discovering and seeking the truth."
Robertson also questioned Sir Craig's rigour.
"Craig has been very public that his management style is an avoidance of conflict, which would be wonderful if he were president of his homeowners' association, but certainly not as leader of Wada and the global anti-doping community," he added.
"Clean athletes need a defender, not an ostrich."
Also critical of Sir Craig was Seppelt, the man behind the ARD documentary.
"It is so embarrassing for the president of the world body who is fighting at the top against doping," he said.
"He is more interested to avoid any damage for sports instead of doing the opposite - to fight against corruption and doping in sports."
Wada spokesman Ben Nichols said Bubka wanted to "discuss the likelihood of further revelations" from the German television documentary with Sir Craig.
Nichols added: "This certainly was not meant to imply in any way that the Wada president wouldn't want doping issues to be exposed.
"However, it is always disappointing to learn that anti-doping organisations that are entrusted to protect athletes may have failed to do so.
"The August allegations related to the blood database were submitted to the independent commission, which ultimately determined that the IAAF had not failed in its duty in this regard."
On Monday, Wada was criticised by the US Senate.
In a letter to Sir Craig, Senator John Thune wanted the 75-year-old Scot to explain why Wada had taken years to investigate claims of a government-run doping programme in Russia.
"These recent allegations, and Wada's subsequent response, have called the organisation's strength and credibility into question," Thune said.
The BBC has also been made aware of an email sent by Sir Craig to Wada staff a few days after a Seppelt documentary broadcast in December 2014.
The documentary exposed widespread Russian doping, and corruption with anti-doping processes, allegations an independent Wada report verified, leading to all the country's track and field athletes being banned from Rio this week. That decision was ratified by the IOC.
The email, sent on 9 December, 2014, came while Wada was planning its reaction to the claims of doping and corruption.
It suggests, by some interpretations, that Sir Craig wanted his staff to assess how the story was playing out in the media before deciding whether to initiate an investigation.
Part of the email reads: "Things are changing here by the minute. How many press comments and Twitter? And are the sources serious?
"I need to think this through and will be back to you tomorrow. One day is not significant. Let me know the stats."
The day before this email from Sir Craig, a strongly worded email from the United States Anti-Doping Agency chief Travis Tygart implored Wada to act quickly.
The BBC has obtained a copy of the email, sent directly to Sir Craig. Tygart wrote: "In the past, Wada has not shrunk from its responsibility to lead the fight against doping… yet in the brief few days since these allegations were reported there seem to be indications that Wada has… deviated from its traditional leadership role.
"Moreover… Wada's initial statements in response to the allegations of Russian doping have been disappointing and unfortunately equivocal and insufficient."
A week later, Wada announced it was forming an independent commission, led by Dick Pound, that ultimately confirmed the ARD documentary's allegations.
In response, Nichols said Wada had needed time to analyse the claims made in the ARD documentary as well as seek "advice from management, input from stakeholders, its impact on stakeholders and in the international media".
He added: "It was important to review as much information as possible before quickly taking the significant step of launching the investigation."
However, British MP Damian Collins said the BBC's disclosures did not suggest Sir Craig was "a man who has a big appetite to get to the truth and get to the bottom of things".
Collins hinted that Sir Craig may also be asked to give evidence to a future meeting of the Culture, Media and Sport committee.
Sir Craig, a close ally of IAAF president Lord Coe, who this week announced that Russian athletes would be banned from Rio, is due to step down as IOC vice-president in August when his term of office ends.
Nichols said Sir Craig acknowledged that his role as vice-president could lead to "perceived split loyalties" and "some suggestions of bias", but said the "perceived conflict" should come to an end when he steps down from the IOC executive committee.


The Saudi authorities have moved to curb the powers of the notorious religious police, or "mutawa".

Members of the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice will no longer be permitted to chase suspects or arrest them.
They must instead report observations to security forces personnel.
Religious police officers, who roam the streets enforcing strict standards of social behaviour, are frequently accused of abusing their powers.
Several were reportedly arrested in February for allegedly assaulting (YouTube video) a young woman outside a shopping centre in the capital, Riyadh.
In 2013, four officers were accused of causing a fatal car crash when they pursued two brothers who had refused to turn the radio down in their vehicle. However, a court subsequently acquitted them.
The new law governing the religious police was approved by the cabinet on Monday, but was not published by the official Saudi Press Agency until Tuesday.
Officers will continue to help enforce strict segregation of the sexes, an absolute prohibition of the sale and consumption of alcohol, a ban on women driving and many other social restrictions.
But the new law stipulates that their mission has been amended to "carrying out the duty of promoting virtue and preventing vice in a gentle and humane way, after the model set in this regard by the Prophet [Muhammad] and his rightful successors".
They will also be obliged to display clear identification, showing their names, posts, jurisdictions and official working hours.
The law stipulates that officers will no longer be permitted to pursue suspects, arrest them or ask for identification - only report suspicious behaviour to regular police and anti-drug units, who will decide whether to take the matter further.


"Maybe one day when there is peace in South Sudan, I will finally see my brother again," says David Dak Chak.

Towards the end of 2013 he was offered a job as a Red Cross worker, but fighting broke out just a few weeks later and, with his brother, he had to flee from the volatile town of Malakal, the capital of Upper Nile state.
But they got separated and that was the last time he saw his younger brother.
Mr Dak Chak moved to neighbouring Jonglei state with his mother not sure of the whereabouts of his brother.
"I was almost giving up on everything, and then in January I heard that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) team was here in Old Fangak, I went there and introduced myself.
"As I was waiting, they handed me a photograph album, and I just couldn't believe it when I saw my brother's picture in it."
As he recounts the story, he is clearly emotional and did a joyful jump at the memory.
It turned out that his brother had fled to neighbouring Ethiopia, and was living in a refugee camp just across the border.
Mr Dak Chak wrote to his brother in January and when I visited Old Fangak, the ICRC had good news for him: His brother had replied.
The ICRC then arranged a phone call and the two brothers spoke for the first time in more than a year.
Mr Dak Chak was happy to learn that his brother was continuing with his secondary school education.
The photograph album where he had spotted his brother is a collection of pictures of people seeking to be reunited with their families.
It has been nicknamed the refugee Facebook and copies of it are in circulation in refugee camps inside South Sudan and in neighbouring Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda.
The same day that Mr Dak Chak spoke to his brother on the phone, 15 other people also discovered the whereabouts of their loved ones.
Nyangai Keek Gulong Gatyang was among the first people to arrive at the ICRC centre in Old Fangak to view the book.
After scouring the pages, the mother of six could not hide her joy after recognising her husband.
They had been separated since December 2013, when her husband travelled from Malakal to the capital, Juba. He was not able to return as fighting broke out and he had to find refuge in the UN camp in the city.
"I never lost hope but right now I don't know even know what I can tell him when I see him again," she tells me.
"Life has been very difficult supporting six children on my own. But just knowing that he is alive gives me so much happiness and hope of living again."
The ICRC says at least 90,000 people have benefitted from the programme in getting in contact with missing relatives.
The service has moved online for those living in the diaspora.
"The web page will allow South Sudanese people living abroad in places like the US, UK, Australia, Canada and France to look for relatives displaced by the violence," says the ICRC's Marc Studer, who is heading the project.
But the harsh reality is many more will never find out what happened to their loved ones.
Last year, the International Crisis Group estimated that the number of those killed in the fighting could be around 50, 000 but warned that the figure could be much higher.
Much of northern South Sudan has remained inaccessible during the conflict and this has made it very difficult to count the number of dead.
Some local NGOs, like Naming the Dead, are trying to compile a list of those killed, so that people are not forgotten.
The conflict in South Sudan began in December 2013 after President Salva Kiir announced that he had overcome an attempted coup.
Over the next few days, a large number of civilians from the Nuer ethnic group of former Vice-President Riek Machar were killed in Juba.
Nuer military units deserted and rallied to a new rebel army - led by Mr Machar.
They, in turn, carried out massacres of civilians in Bor, Bentiu and Malakal.
Despite a number of efforts to secure a peace deal, the conflict has still not ended and last month there was a flare-up in the fighting.
There will no doubt be more stories of separation in the future and not all of them will end with a happy reunion.


Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, high commissioner for human rights at the United Nations, has warned that a "Pandora's box" will be opened if Apple co-operates with the FBI.

The FBI has ordered the tech giant to assist it with unlocking an iPhone used by San Bernadino gunman Syed Farook.
Prince Al Hussein said the law enforcement agency "deserves everyone's full support" in its investigation.
However, encryption was essential in the interests of freedom, he added.
"There are many ways to investigate whether or not these killers had accomplices besides forcing Apple to create software to undermine the security features of their own phones," he said in a statement.
"It is potentially a gift to authoritarian regimes, as well as to criminal hackers.
"Encryption and anonymity are needed as enablers of both freedom of expression and opinion, and the right to privacy. Without encryption tools, lives may be endangered."
Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife Tashfeen Malik killed 14 people and left 22 injured when they opened fire at his place of work in California in December 2015.
The FBI has asked Apple to disable a feature that means the data on an iPhone is erased after 10 incorrect attempts at the four-digit password. It also wants to be able to run software that could go through the 10,000 possible combinations to unlock the gunman's handset quickly.
Apple says agreeing to the request would set "a dangerous precedent".
A number of major tech firms have also pledged their support for Apple's refusal to circumvent its own security.
Two groups of tech giants have now filed an amicus brief, which allows parties not directly involved in a court case, but who feel they are affected by it, to give their view.
They include Twitter, AirBnB, eBay, LinkedIn, Reddit, Amazon, Microsoft, Snapchat and Yahoo.
However, a lawyer representing a group of Farook's surviving victims said he would file similar legal paperwork on their behalf in support of the FBI.
"They were targeted by terrorists, and they need to know why, how this could happen," said Stephen Larson, a former judge.
He declined to say how many of the victims he was representing, but did add that he would not be charging them a fee.


They call it Judgement Day, and on Saturday more than 60,000 fans will watch Wales' four rugby regions in action at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.

The showpiece of the domestic game in Wales - in its fourth season - will see Cardiff Blues tackle Ospreys followed by Newport Gwent Dragons against Scarlets.
But it is more than an end of season exhibition. Much more.
Media playback is not supported on this device
With two rounds of Pro12 matches remaining, play-off places and top-tier European qualification are on the line as well as local bragging rights.
So here's a quick guide to the matches, and what's on the line for the teams.
With neither side serious contenders for the end-of-season play-offs, resurgent Blues and faltering Ospreys are fighting for European Champions Cup qualification.
Danny Wilson's eighth-placed Blues are one spot and three points ahead of their opponents but six points away from sixth place, which is effectively the final qualification position as the highest Italian finisher claims the seventh slot.
Even if they avenge last November's 13-6 defeat by Ospreys, the Cardiff region will be relying on Scarlets beating Munster at Thomond Park after the Irish team's bonus-point win over Edinburgh.
A win for Blues could set up a big final-day showdown at Edinburgh.
Media playback is not supported on this device
Friday night's win for Munster leaves Ospreys likely miss out on European rugby's top competition for the first time since the region's inception in 2004.
They will again be without Wales forwards Justin Tipuric (concussion) and Paul James (eye) and club captain Alun Wyn Jones (heel).
Form Guide: Cardiff Blues are looking for a fifth consecutive win; Ospreys have won two and lost two in their past four matches.
Scarlets could be Wales' first representatives in next season's European Champions Cup before this game kicks off - if Ospreys beat Blues without a bonus point.
That would secure their place as Wales' top side in the Pro12.
Ironically it was Scarlets' win in Swansea on 26 March that dealt a mortal blow to Ospreys' European ambitions.
After that result, the west Wales region looked a solid bet for a top-four finish to reach the end-of-season play-offs.
But home defeats against Blues and Glasgow - the latter a 46-10 hammering - have derailed coach Wayne Pivac's team, who now lie fifth.
A glance at the table would suggest Scarlets would be strong favourites against 10th-placed Dragons, but the men of Gwent have pushed everyone close this season - as their 10 losing bonus points attest.
And their 23-21 win over Gloucester in the European Challenge Cup quarter-final showed that on their day, Dragons can produce a shock.
Media playback is not supported on this device
Scarlets should finish as Wales' top side and qualify for the 2016-17 Champions Cup, while that train has long since departed from the Dragons' station. They will play in the second-tier Challenge Cup.
But a shock result here would leave Pivac's team vulnerable if Blues beat Ospreys - especially with a tough trip to Munster on the final day.
But a win here and a victory for Leinster at Ulster would see the Scarlets climb into the last play-off place.
Form guide: Scarlets have lost their past two league matches, but Dragons have lost their last eight Pro12 games.
Not so long ago Wales was guaranteed three places at Europe's top table.
In contrast to the national side's consistent challenge at European level, the regions have barely made a dent.
The last Welsh side to reach the knockout stages of the top-flight tournament were Cardiff Blues in 2012.
If things go badly in the final two weeks of the Pro12 season Wales will end up with just one team in the Champions' Cup next season - the same as Italy.
And that would be a major setback following the restructuring of the tournament in 2013 and the new agreement for funding of the domestic game agreed in the same year.
On a positive note, two wins each for Blues and Scarlets would secure a second place for Wales in the Champions Cup.
However, Ospreys and Dragons fans might feel parochial interests trump national concerns.


The Italian navy has recaptured a Sicilian fishing boat hours after it was seized by the Libyan coastguard up to 64km off the coast of Libya.

Italian navy personnel boarded the vessel, which was taken to the Libyan port of Misrata before being released.
The Libyan coastguard said the boat was seized in "a peaceful operation" after entering Libyan waters.
The vessel did not have a fishing permit and had breached Libyan sovereignty, a spokesman told the BBC.
"It was a peaceful operation, no shots were fired," he said.
The Italian navy said that military personnel in the area on migrant rescue duties responded to reports of the fishing boat seizure. There were no reports of any injuries.
The crew, which had been fishing for shrimp, comprised three Italians and four Tunisians resident in Italy.
A spokesman for the Italian fishing co-operative told the BBC that there have been 12 such seizures by Libya since 2005.
The gunmen initially appeared to be militia members using an unmarked government boat, the spokesman said.
The fishing co-operative has described the incident as "an act of piracy" and said that, since 2005, Libya has insisted that its territorial waters extend more than 112km (69 miles) off shore - much further than international agreements allow.
The co-operative said Libya's deteriorating security situation - the country is in effect fragmented with rival parliaments backed by warring militias - had added to concerns about the safety of the crew.


(Closes):US shares recovered slightly from heavy losses sustained earlier in the day, as the price of oil fell to 2003 levels.

The Dow Industrial Average dropped 565 points earlier on Wednesday, but recovered slightly to the close 249 points down, at 15,766.7.
The S&P 500 lost 22 points, to 1,859, while the Nasdaq index fell 5 points to 4,471.69.
US crude oil fell below $27 a barrel, its lowest level since May 2003.
Brent Crude was down 2.1% at $28.16 a barrel.
The continued fall in oil sent energy stocks down. Exxon Mobil saw its shares drop 4% and Chevron fell 3%.
"The focus remains on oil and the impact of low oil prices, which points to slowing growth and possibly, even stagnant to negative growth here in the United States," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at First Standard Financial.
Official figures showed that consumer prices fell 0.1% in December, the fall being largely explained by the falling cost of energy.
US markets have had their worst start to a year as investors worry about growth in China, rising US interest rates and a plunge in the price of oil.


It's midnight and there are hundreds of students crowded into the University of Reading's library.

It's a glimpse of how much student life has changed, what students expect from universities and how much pressure they feel about the future.
In the 1970s, students at Reading staged an occupation calling for the abolition of exams. Now, in the depths of the exam season, they are voluntarily occupying the library in the middle of the night, so that they can get in as much revision as possible.
During weekdays in term time the library is open 24/7. Never mind 24-hour clubbing, here it's round the clock studying. It's become part of student life in universities across the UK.
But if libraries are meant to be slow-moving places under layers of dust and silence, then it's nothing like that here.
The lights are blazing in the library building in the middle of the Reading campus. It's full of young people surrounded by notebooks, laptops, mobile phones and snacks. There's a lone printed book on a desk, with almost all the revision taking place online. There's a low level of background chat as students work together.
It would be unusual to see such a busy library in the middle of the day, but here it's buzzing in the middle of the night. There are groups of students coming and going, talking in a cafe - and overnight library figures show there were still more than 100 students there at 03:30.
Niamh, a pharmacy student, has been working there since 09:00 and expected to carry on studying in the library until about 01:30.
Two students revising for second-year exams, Alex and Matthew, say they will be back again at 06:00.
"You have to get in before 08:00 to get a place," says Alex, studying biochemistry. He knows that his generation is a long way from any stereotypes of student slackers.
"We're under more pressure to do well, we have to work harder," he says.
And when students are paying Â£9,000 per year, they want to have good facilities.
"It's essential to have a good library," says Matthew.
When the weather is good during the day, Alex says people might prefer to study at night. "It's a nice time to work," he says.
There are other students there who say it's better to work in a group rather than alone in their rooms. It's a more sociable way of working through the stresses of the exam season.
None of them see it as strange to be working in a library in the early hours.
Reading's library, with five floors of nocturnal students hunched over laptops, is having a Â£4.4m revamp. Universities are in the middle of a building boom, as they compete for students with facilities and accommodation.
Like an academic department store, different parts of the library have different moods - there are bright Ikea style open plan areas, for more solitary study there are cocooning booths and quiet corners and other rooms have big traditional desks and softer lighting.
There is a relentless switch to online materials, but there are still rooms with traditional bookshelves, even if there is no longer the metallic crunch of a library stamp putting in a return date. Withdrawals are now self-service and electronic.
Julia Munro, the university's librarian, says that on open days would-be students compare the facilities with what they've seen elsewhere.
And they expect to be able to use the library whenever they want.
"They tell us they want to study when they want to study - and if they want to study at 02:00, they think they should be able to."
It wasn't always this way. The library is exactly 50 years old, and in the reception area there is the original architect's model. It's like a 1960s time capsule, with its clean lines and open-plan civic optimism.
It opened the same month that Terence Conran opened the first Habitat store in London, Joe Orton was premiering his new play Entertaining Mr Sloane and in the United States there were the first major student protests in New York and San Francisco over the Vietnam War.
The Beatles had recently had a number one with Can't Buy Me Love.
In those early days, students couldn't even use the university library at the weekend. Now Julia Munro and her colleague Rachel Redrup say there is likely to be demand for even more open access, such as longer hours during the holidays.
The move to open libraries through the night has been driven by consumer pressure from students. It's a pattern that's spread across universities across the UK - so much so that it's now more or less standard in many institutions.
In the US, it's gone a step further with reports last week of college libraries introducing "nap stations" so that students could have somewhere to crash out during their marathon studying sessions.
The librarians at Reading say the library provides its own barometer of change.
Rachel Redrup says in the 1960s the students using the library would have been part of a small percentage of the population going to university, who would have been confident of walking out into a good job.
Now, says Julia Munro, students are less certain of the future.
"They feel they're under greater pressure. They're worried about jobs," she says.


Money set aside for promoting physical activity and healthy eating in schools should not be used to "plug a black hole in funding", councils say.

The Local Government Association (LGA) says the government needs to find "genuinely new money" to meet its funding pledges to schools in England.
Ministers insist money raised from a sugar tax on soft drinks will be spent on improving child health.
But the LGA fears this money is being used to cover funding shortages.
It says schemes to improve pupils' health cannot be seen as "nice-to-do but fundamentally non-essential".
In February, ministers announced that £415m would be pumped into schools, as part of a healthy-pupils capital programme, to pay for facilities that support sport, after-school activities and healthy eating.
This is to be paid for by a levy on soft drinks with the most added sugar, introduced from April 2018.
Last week, Education Secretary Justine Greening announced an extra £1.3 billion for schools over the next two years, a move that came amid concerns from schools and parents about intense and growing pressures on budgets.
Some of this £1.3bn would come from making savings of £315m from the healthy-pupils funding, the Department for Education (DfE) said.
It is understood that the government now expects to receive less money than previously expected from the sugar tax and the Treasury is topping up the fund to the original expectation of about £1bn.
It is understood that it is this part of the money that will now go towards general school funding.
But Izzi Seccombe, chairman of the LGA's community wellbeing board, said:  "It is vital that the soft drinks levy, which marked a significant step in the fight against obesity, is protected.
"Government needs to find genuinely new money to meets its new school funding commitments.
"It is perverse and counterproductive to simply shift this money around, particularly at the expense of children's health."
Sugar tax: How will it work?
Soft drinks levy will earn schools £415m
Young 'to get biggest sugar tax boost'
Mrs Seccombe added: "The government needs to be clear about what this now means for the levy, and for reducing the worrying levels of child obesity in this country.
"Schemes that encourage physical activity, healthy eating and improve children's mental and physical health - which the levy would have been used to pay for - cannot be seen as nice-to-do but fundamentally non-essential."
A spokeswoman for the Department for Education said: "Our soft drinks industry levy will raise an estimated £775m by 2020 and has led to soft drinks companies cutting sugar levels in their products.
"Every penny of England's share of that money will be spent on improving child health."


Amid a spate of high-profile fights in the business world, one New York hedge fund has thrown a lot of punches.

Elliott Management, which oversees about $30bn (Â£23.5bn) worth of assets, has earned a reputation over 40 years as a no-holds-barred activist investor, with an unusually large appetite for public face-offs.
The firm famously pursued Argentine debt for more than a decade, seizing one of the country's naval ships while it was docked in Ghana and prompting the country to default. In the UK, it also intervened in coach operator National Express and fought supermarket Tesco for damages stemming from a 2014 accounting scandal.
In recent weeks the firm has been making headlines again.
A dispute with the head of aluminium parts maker Arconic led to the ousting of Arconic chief executive Klaus Kleinfeld.
In addition, Elliott has called for overhaul at Australian mining giant BHP Billiton, put pressure on Samsung to restructure, and pushed for the hostile takeover of Dulux paint owner AkzoNobel.
"They're renowned for being very involved and active," says Josh Black, editor-in-chief of Activist Insight, which tracks shareholder activism. "Just by virtue of their sizeâ€¦ they're able to cope with more public situations at any one time."
Founded in 1977 by Paul Singer, Elliott launched with $1.3m.
Singer, a New Jersey native who trained at Harvard Law School, described it at the time as a "tiny, little friends-and-family" firm.
Assets under management have risen sharply since, to about $19bn in 2012 and $30bn today. Its investor include very wealthy private individuals, sovereign wealth funds, foundations and pension funds.
The hedge fund, which has had a base in London since 1994 as Elliott Advisors, has said it's only lost money twice - in 1998 and 2008.
The firm's success has vaulted Singer into the ranks of the mega rich, with a net worth that Forbes estimates at $2.7bn. The 72-year-old Wall Street titan has also reportedly jammed with rocker Meat Loaf.
A supporter of gay rights and Jewish charities, Singer has also attracted attention for his politics.
He's put millions into Republican causes, backing the failed presidential campaigns of Mitt Romney, Marco Rubio and Rudy Giuliani.
Last year, he said Donald Trump's anti-trade policies would lead to a global depression, but he opposed new financial rules introduced under former President Barack Obama and is likely to support some of the changes contemplated by the new regime.
His firm's investment strategies range widely, from buying distressed debt, to intervening during mergers. It often targets companies where it believes the stock is undervalued, pushing for leadership changes, spin-offs, or share buybacks, which boost share values for existing stockholders.
Critics compare the firm to a vulture capitalist, with a focus on short-term wins in its own interest. In 2014, French regulators fined Elliott for insider trading.
Politicians worried about jobs in their districts are among those pushing back on some of the firm's recent efforts.
Singer has rejected those characterisations.
"I believe in a balance of power," he said at a conference last year. "There's a whole industry of people to protect corporations, an industry devoted to saying that long-termism is a valuable, moral thing and short-termism is bad.
"There are activist strategies that are destructive and harmful... but we think the things that we have done have added to stakeholder value."
More shareholders are starting to agree, spurring a rise in activist petitions in recent years, says Josh Black of Activist Insight, which identified 260 companies subjected to activist demands in the first three months of this year.
While that is down compared with the same period last year - when Black says rocky markets may have created more opportunities - the firms involved have tended to be bigger and increasingly located outside the US, according to Activist Insight.
Elliott itself has made demands on dozens of companies in recent years, turning its attention beyond the technology firms that were once its primary focus. The firm has also branched out its partnerships, working with a private equity firm in at least one instance and taking a large stake in Bentham Ventures, a firm focused on shareholder lawsuits.
"That's all quite new," Black says.
Singer, who predicted the 2008 financial crash and warned of risks in the global market last year, doesn't limit his calls for new leadership to business either.
At the Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado last summer, when asked whom he planned to vote for in the presidential election, he dismissed Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton in favour of someone closer to home.
Half-joking, he said: "I was actually thinking of writing in myself."


So says Govan, a thin, bearded French jazz musician from Lyon whom I meet in a German language class for people recently arrived in Berlin.
"In one month," he says, "I met lot of people from everywhere."
The faces around the table are young, the accents mainly European. They tell a story about how the demography of this country is changing fast.
Germany is now the world's second most popular destination - after the US - for immigrants. And they are arriving in the hundreds of thousands.
Net migration to Germany has not been this high for 20 years, and even the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) describes it as a boom. In 2012, 400,000 so-called "permanent migrants" arrived here.
They are people who have the right to stay for more than a year. That represents an increase of 38% on the year before.
They are coming from Eastern Europe, but also from the countries of the southern Eurozone, lured by Germany's stronger economy and jobs market.
And they are being welcomed with open arms - by the government at least - because Germany has a significant skills gap, and a worryingly low birth rate.
"Immigrants are on average younger and the German population is on average older, so immigrants are welcome," says Dr Ingrid Tucci, from the German Institute for Economic Research.
"It's important to attract students and highly qualified people. So the government is making it easier for them, trying to invest and put a culture of welcome in place."
Here they call it "Willkommenskultur".
In practice it means free or cheap German language lessons for immigrants plus integration and citizenship classes.
As Berlin's senator for work, integration and women, it is Dilek Kolat's job to facilitate Willkommenskultur in the city.
"Every academic, every employer will tell you we need skilled migration. There's a change in perception in wider society.
"We don't look at migrants as a possible threat or a possible problem, but we look at them as potential.
"What can they bring to society? Business[es] are approaching the senate and asking how can we get the young refugees into apprenticeships which at the moment aren't taken up by German kids."
But Willkommenskultur is also about attitude.
And - politically at least - it's changed substantially since the days of Helmut Kohl.
Under his leadership Germany was 'not a country of immigration' despite the hundreds of thousands of Turkish migrant workers who'd been invited here in the sixties.
They had been recruited to help with Germany's post-war reconstruction.
And - as their families and friends arrived to join them - Germany's immigration figures spiked for the first time since the Second World War. In 1970 for example annual net immigration stood at more than half a million.
Private papers recently published by the German news website Spiegel Online reveal Chancellor Kohl told then UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in 1982 that he wanted to halve the number of Turks living in Germany. They did not, he said, "integrate well".
Today they are an established community. Stroll through the Berlin district of Neukoln and you pass hundreds of businesses run by their children and grandchildren.
In the window of one of the restaurants here, a large chunk of roasting meat turns slowly on a spit. Inside, a woman with a headscarf sips tea from a glass in front of a counter stacked with kebabs and and flatbreads ready for the lunchtime rush.
It is owned by Hassan - an earnest man in his 40s, who arrived in Germany with his parents when he was 13. But he worries about immigration today.
'It's great people come to Germany. They should be able to come. But people who don't work shouldn't be able to stay. Look at me - I work 20 hours a day.
"There are a lot of beggars. They have no money but ask for food. I give them kebabs, pizzas, but my heart breaks - I can't give food to everyone."
Neither, it seems, can some German towns and cities, who are largely responsible for the welfare of immigrants.
Last year the mayors of 16 large German cities wrote to the government asking for help with unemployed migrants flooding into their regions from Eastern Europe. Places like Cologne, Dortmund and Hanover have struggled to cope.
And there is growing support in Germany for a new political party. Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) acknowledges the need for migrant workers but still wants tighter controls on immigration.
This, though, is a country still haunted by the atrocities of World War Two.
People here are mindful of how devastating the consequences of "Rassenhass" - racial hatred - can be.
And bear in mind most of today's migrants are moving within the EU.
Since Bulgaria and Romania acceded in 2007 there's been a significant increase of immigrants from both countries - 67,000 Romanians and 29,000 Bulgarians arrived in the first half of 2013.
In response to public concern about the numbers, Angela Merkel's government pledged to crack down on migrants who fraudulently claimed benefits but - in the words of one politician from her conservative CDU party - free movement for workers is "one of the main pillars of the European Union".
So, as Dr Tucci says: "There aren't a lot of tensions - Germany doesn't compare with countries like France where tensions are more virulent.
"It's important though to say the population has to be prepared for immigration. There are perhaps fears of newcomers. So political rhetoric is important."
Back in the language class, I meet Alissa and David - an architect and a musicians' agent - who have arrived from Milan.
"We discovered that Milan was too expensive for us and the quality of life was not so good," says David.
"We had some money and we decided to buy a flat here in Berlin because it was cheaper than Italy.
"We were looking for a real metropolis, and in Europe the big cities are too expensive. Berlin was the only solution. The only problem is the language."
But, adds Alissa: "I feel at home."
She is in good company. More than 7.6 million foreigners are registered as living in Germany. It is the highest number since records began in 1967.
In the words of President Joachim Gauck: "A look at our country shows how bizarre it is that some people cling to the idea that there could be such a thing as a homogenous, closed single-coloured Germany.
"It's not easy to grasp what it is to be German - and it keeps changing."


Party leaders and candidates are making a last-ditch grab for votes on the final day of campaigning before the general election polls open.

Prime Minister David Cameron will promise to keep Britain "on the road to a brighter future", while Labour's Ed Miliband will pledge "a government that will put working people first".
Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg will offer "stability and decency".
Polls suggest no party will win enough seats for an outright majority.
BBC deputy political editor James Landale said politicians, pollsters and the media were struggling to read the election, leading many to focus on what might happen if there is an uncertain result.
"As such, Thursday might not be the end of the process," he said.
"It might just be the calling of the half-time whistle."
In other general election news:
The leaders have been criss-crossing the country in their battle buses as they attempt to drum up support ahead of Thursday's poll.
Mr Cameron is heading to north west England, Scotland and the Midlands, while Mr Miliband is visiting Conservative-held marginal seats in the north of England.
Mr Clegg, who set off from Land's End on Tuesday, is heading to John O'Groats through Scottish constituencies his party is hoping to retain.
The prime minister, whose Conservative Party won 307 seats in 2010, will renew his attack on the possibility of a minority Labour government propped up by the Scottish National Party (SNP) and try to dissuade voters tempted by the Liberal Democrats or UKIP.
The British people will make "their most important decision for a generation", he will say.
"When you go into the polling booth tomorrow - know this: your vote really can make a difference.
"You can deliver a stable government and have a secure future, but only if you vote Conservative and for me as your prime minister."
What are the top issues for each political party at the 2015 general election?
Policy guide: Where the parties stand
Mr Miliband is looking to improve on the 258 seats Labour won in 2010 under the leadership of former Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
He will say voters face a "clear choice" between "a government that puts working people first, or one that works for the privileged few".
He will accuse the Conservatives of having run a "desperate, negative campaign", saying Labour are "the ones with the momentum as we enter the final straight".
Mr Clegg, whose Liberal Democrats are battling to keep hold of the 57 seats they won five years ago, will visit marginal Scottish seats under threat from the SNP, telling voters: "You face the biggest political decision of your life."
He has sought to position his party as keeping any future coalition government "anchored" in the centre ground.
Without the Lib Dems, he will say, "Labour or the Conservatives will be left to run a messy and unstable minority government, dependent on the SNP on the one hand or UKIP and the DUP on the other".
The SNP's Nicola Sturgeon, who has dominated many of the headlines of this campaign and is forecast to take a number of seats from Labour in Scotland, will make her final speech in Edinburgh later.
Speaking on BBC Newsnight, UKIP's Mark Reckless, one of two former Conservative MPs to defect to Nigel Farage's party in the last parliament, said he would be disappointed if UKIP did not win "four or five" seats.
Green Party leader Natalie Bennett, whose party is looking to add to the one seat it won in 2010, will make a speech in Bristol where she will stress her determination to "keep the Tories out of government and keep Labour in line".
The best of BBC News' Election 2015 specials


A driver who narrowly missed a pedestrian pushing a pram through Hawick has been jailed for 18 months.

Darrell Potts, 24, from the town, was found guilty of dangerous driving on various streets in August 2015.
A court heard he drove at excessive speeds forcing people to take evasive action and had to brake sharply to narrowly avoid someone with a pram.
He also failed to observe a pelican crossing and did not stop when requested to do so by police.
In addition to his jail term, Potts was also banned from the road for five years at Selkirk Sheriff Court and ordered to re-sit an extended test after his ban.


Details of Peter Capaldi's final outing in Doctor Who have been revealed as the first trailer for the Christmas special was released online.

The one-minute clip for the episode, titled Twice Upon A Time, sees Capaldi and the First Doctor team up.
It features the return of Pearl Mackie as Bill Potts, who had seemingly left the show at the end of series 10.
The clip also showed a guest appearance from Mark Gatiss, who plays a World War One soldier called The Captain.
The release of the trailer coincided with the cast appearing at Comic-Con in San Diego on Sunday, where they talked about the upcoming episode, the last series and looked back at Capaldi's time on the sci-fi drama.
Gatiss described the Christmas special as being "a Christmas episode without being overtly Christmassy - it's very happy-sad".
He added: "[It's] a fantastic episode and we had a great time doing it. It was a lovely way out."
It will be the third time the Sherlock actor and writer has appeared on Doctor Who, after previously starring in episodes in series three and six.
Mackie also confirmed the festive episode will be her last appearance on the show.
Twice Upon a Time is the final episode for Peter Capaldi's Twelfth Doctor and for outgoing showrunner Steven Moffat. Both have been huge Doctor Who fans for most of their lives, and their final story is clearly a love letter to a show that means a huge amount to both.
This first trailer begins with original footage of the First Doctor, William Hartnell, from 1966's The Tenth Planet (episode two if you're interested), which then mixes through to David Bradley who plays him in this story.
But it also shows a glimpse of a scene with the First Doctor and his assistant Polly from episode four - Hartnell's final episode before Patrick Troughton took over. Sadly that episode is one of the dozens that are still missing from the BBC archives.
The minute-long teaser also makes clear that this Christmas story won't just be accessible to long term fans. Bill will be back, after she was last seen heading off to travel the universe with student-turned-space and time traveller Heather.
The trailer also shows actor and writer Mark Gatiss making another Doctor Who appearance. In 2007 he played Professor Lazarus, and he also briefly popped up playing a different character in 2011.
Comic-Con fans were shown a three-minute goodbye video for Capaldi, thanking him for his time on the show, which led to a standing ovation.
The actor praised writer and executive producer Steven Moffat, saying: "Every shot you saw there came through his gentleman's mind. The message of the show comes from his heart."
The team also addressed the casting of Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor and first female to take on the role.
Capaldi called it "a great choice", adding: "I think Jodie's going to be amazing and she's so full of excitement and full of passion about the show.
It's really thrilling to know it's in the hands of somebody who cares for it so deeply and is going to do exciting things with it."
Meanwhile, Moffat criticised the "imaginary backlash" in the media on the issue.
"There's so many press articles about a backlash among Doctor Who fandom against the casting of a female Doctor. There has been no backlash at all," he said.
"[Jodie has] an 80% approval rating on social media. I wish every single journalist who is writing the alternative would shut the hell up - it's not true."
The outgoing writer and executive producer also cleared up the issue of whether the character's name is Doctor Who or the Doctor.
"There isn't any doubt about it, I'm sorry," Moffat said. "It was established in The War Machines (episode) that his name is Doctor Who."
He provided evidence to back up his point, including signing letters "Doctor W" and the third Doctor having a "Who" licence plate.
"He doesn't often call himself Doctor Who because it's a bloody stupid name," Moffat added.
On Saturday, Capaldi told Empire he was both sad to be leaving the series and excited for its future.
"[The Christmas special] is a wonderful episode and I couldn't have wanted for any more.
"It's an emotional and moving end to my time as Doctor Who."
More from Comic-Con
Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.


The Paralympics come to an end this weekend.

16 September 2016 Last updated at 07:44 BST
The Games have been a massive success for Great Britain's Paralympic stars.
But what do they mean to kids with disabilities watching here in the UK?
If you want to find out more about disability sport click here - or find inclusive options on our full list of BBC Get Inspired guides.


Stuart Beavon's first-half strike moved Burton to the top of League One with their first ever win at Swindon.

Beavon smashed home just before the half-hour mark to inflict a second successive defeat on Swindon, following their loss at Barnsley last weekend.
The striker punished hesitancy among the Swindon defence with a clinical volley, the Brewers' first ever goal at the County Ground.
Wes Thomas dragged wide from inside the penalty area for the home side.
Jon Obika and Louis Thompson also missed the target while Yaser Kasim had a free-kick pushed over by Jon McLaughlin as Burton held out for the win.
Burton Albion boss Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink told BBC Radio Derby:
Media playback is not supported on this device
"I'm very happy. I think when you're coming to Swindon, you know what they're about. They can keep the ball for fun and they can test your nerves and get overloads in certain areas, but we made it very uncomfortable for them. We didn't let them get into their stride, we didn't let them play their game and get into their rhythm.
"For us, it was all about winning the ball back in their half and trying to penetrate in the last third and I think we did that really well.
"We should have scored more goals and that's something we need to work at, but I must say I'm extremely happy with how the team has worked today. We were very solid and we were quite creative with the ball at times, but the belief needs to become greater because they can do a lot more than they think."


Swedish poet Tomas Transtroemer, who was awarded the 2011 Nobel Prize for Literature, has died at the age of 83.

His publisher, Bonniers, said the writer died in Stockholm on Thursday after a short illness.
A trained psychologist, Transtroemer suffered a stroke in 1990 that affected his ability to talk.
His poems - described by Publishers Weekly as "mystical, versatile and sad" - have been translated into more than 50 languages.
Transtroemer was tipped as a potential Nobel prize winner for many years before he became the 108th recipient of the prestigious award in 2011.
The Royal Swedish Academy named him the recipient "because, through his condensed, translucent images, he gives us fresh access to reality".
He was the first Swede to receive the prize since authors Eyvind Johnson and Harry Martinson shared it in 1974.
Born in April 1931 in Stockholm, Transtroemer graduated in psychology in 1956 and later worked in an institution for juvenile offenders.
His first collection of poetry, Seventeen Poems, was published when he was 23.
In 1966 he received the Bellman prize for Swedish poetry, one of many accolades he received over his long career.
In 2003 one of his poems was read at the memorial service of Anna Lindh, Sweden's murdered foreign minister.
Transtroemer is survived by his wife Monika and their two daughters, Emma and Paula.


The first African woman to command a navy vessel has recently been appointed in South Africa.

22 November 2015 Last updated at 05:46 GMT
Zimasa Mabela broke new ground when she took charge of a de-mining ship based in Cape Town last month.
The 38-year-old mother of two says she wants to be judged on her ability to command and not her gender.
The BBC's Nomsa Maseko spent the day with her on her ship.
Our 100 Women season showcases two weeks of inspirational stories about the BBC 100 Women and others who defy stereotypes around the world.
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram using the hashtag #100Women.


Scottish Power has announced a price rise of 8.6% for dual-fuel energy bills from 6 December.

The company said it would increase gas prices by 8.5% and electricity prices by 9%.
The move comes amid political wrangling over the issue of energy bills, with the government planning to review the green levies that form part of a bill.
On Monday, Scottish Power was hit by an £8.5m penalty for misleading doorstep and telephone sales.
The price rise would lead to a £113 increase in the average annual dual-fuel bill to £1,424, Scottish Power said. It will affect about 2.2 million Scottish Power customers.
However, different areas of the country will face different price increases. For example, the rise will be 10.2% on average in southern England, but 7.3% in some areas of Scotland.
Scottish Power is the fourth of the six major energy suppliers to announce price rises.
SSE announced an 8.2% increase in domestic bills from 15 November, British Gas said prices for its customers would go up by 9.2% on 23 November, and Npower announced the biggest rise of 10.4% which will take effect from 1 December.
Scottish Power echoed the views of other suppliers by suggesting that the price rises were the result of the rising wholesale cost of energy. The cost of delivering energy to people's homes, and the rising cost of the government's environmental and social schemes were also to blame, it said.
Neil Clitheroe, chief executive of energy retail and generation for Scottish Power, said that there were a number of costs - such as windfarm payments - that did not exist 10 years ago, but which affected bills.
"With an increase in costs for delivering compulsory schemes to reduce carbon emissions and improving energy efficiency in homes, we unfortunately have no other option than to pass these on by increasing our prices for customers," he said.
"We understand that these are difficult times for many families, and we have done what we can to hold our prices for as long as possible. Recently we announced a range of measures to help our most vulnerable customers this winter.
"We will now write to every customer who will be impacted by the price increase, and we would encourage anyone who is concerned to contact us so we can discuss their options."
Ann Robinson, of price comparison website Uswitch.com, which would benefit from people switching supplier, said: "Unfortunately, the floodgates have opened and it looks like consumers are going to be buffeted by suppliers in very quick succession."
Iberdrola, the Spanish parent group of Scottish Power, said that its UK operations had been affected by tight margins, as well as by energy efficiency and environmental measures imposed by the regulator.
"As a consequence, generation and supply is now loss-making, and leaves the company no option but to increase tariffs," it said.
There has been considerable political debate over the price rises.
Labour leader Ed Miliband has pledged a price freeze for 20 months if his party wins the next election and has been on the attack over the issue.
Subsequently, Prime Minister David Cameron said that there would be a review of the green levies charged to companies that are included in bills. He said this accounted for £113 on an average bill - the same amount as Scottish Power's subsequent price rise announcement.
The review will be followed by a competition test for the energy market to establish how it is functioning.
The Liberal Democrats called the idea a "panicky U-turn" by Mr Cameron, although Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg later said some of the environmental policies could be delivered in a more cost-effective way.
On Tuesday, former Conservative Prime Minister Sir John Major called for a windfall tax on excess profits made by the largest suppliers.
On Tuesday, energy firm bosses will give evidence to a committee of MPs about the price rises.
Between August and December last year, the "big six" energy companies introduced price rises of between 6% and 10.8%.
Earlier this week, the regulator, Ofgem, said that Scottish Power customers were misled during sales approaches due to the firm's failure to "adequately train and monitor" staff.
The company apologised for the errors between 2009 and 2012, and has set up a £1m compensation fund for customers who believe they were victims of mis-selling.
It said it would also pay £7.5m to the 140,000 customers it has on the government-led "warm home discount scheme" aimed at supporting customers who are likely to be at risk of fuel poverty, as part of the penalty.


A "distraught" mother has been denied access to a full report into the death of her teenage daughter while in care.

Seren Bernard, 14, took her own life while living with foster carers in Pembrokeshire in 2012.
A serious case review was published in 2014, but Sarah Pollock was only given a summary of its contents.
A fresh call was made to Pembrokeshire council on Thursday, but it said it could not disclose the full report based on "clear legal advice".
Cabinet member for wellbeing, Tessa Hodgson, said: "On a personal level I can sympathise with the request. I think if any of us were named in an official document they would want to read the full report".
But she said the council had received "clear legal advice" and "that it is not within the gift of this council to disclose the full report".
The summary of the report said Seren, referred to as child M, had made a suicide attempt in 2011, and research indicated a further attempt "was a possibility".
"However, in the days prior to her death, her mood is recorded to have lifted and her behaviour gave no indication that she was contemplating suicide," it read.
It concluded: "It must remain uncertain whether there were any steps, if taken, would have prevented child M's death."
Ms Pollock said the report was a "document for learning" but questioned how lessons could be learned when "it was in lock down".
She said not knowing the contents of the report had left her feeling "traumatised and dysfunctional" as "so many questions have been left unanswered".
Speaking after the full council, she said she was "absolutely appalled" by the decision.
She said she would continue to campaign as the report was a "matter of public interest" and it was "her right to sight".


Police officers and security staff have been spotted parking on double yellow lines outside a bakery in Bristol.

A patrol car was seen on double yellow lines in Clifton last week and a Bristol University car a week later.
Avon and Somerset Police said there was operational activity in the area so officers "could have been" visiting the bakery to advise on security measures.
Bristol University said it had identified the officer responsible who had apologised "unreservedly".
The police car was spotted on Tuesday last week while the university security car was photographed on 24 May. On both occasions uniformed staff were seen in a nearby bakery.
A police spokeswoman said without a number plate or vehicle ID it was "very difficult to trace which officers were involved and what they were doing".
"If the officers were not attending to operational duties and were just there to buy their breakfast then it would not be what we expect from them," she said.
"If they are found to have breached this advice then the matter would be referred to their supervisors."
Bristol University said: "We have identified the officer responsible and reminded her of the university's standard operating procedures. The officer in question apologises unreservedly."
Meanwhile Bristol City Council said it would not be issuing finesas its parking attendants have to witness any wrongdoing first hand.


A new £11m building to accommodate a centre for Middle East studies has been officially opened at Oxford University.

The glass-fronted structure, sandwiched between the Victorian buildings of St Antony's College, was designed by architect Zaha Hadid.
At Tuesday's opening, Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser of Qatar spoke of growing Islamophobia and the "fear of real, living Muslims" in Europe.
The event was attended by dignitaries, academics and ambassadors.
The Investcorp Building occupies college grounds on Woodstock Road.
It doubles the space for the centre's library and archive and includes a 118-seat lecture theatre, freeing up space in the college's existing buildings.
Founded in 1957, the Middle East Centre at St Antony's College holds Oxford University's primary collection on the modern Middle East.
It is Oxford's facility for research and teaching on the Arab world, Iran, Israel and Turkey from the 19th century to the present day.


A parliamentary election is under way in Belarus, but opposition parties not represented in the chamber for 20 years are sceptical of their chances.

There are 448 candidates for 110 lower-house seats being contested.
While the opposition is not predicted to win any seats, the government has allowed them to register more easily than in previous votes. It wants to build better relations with the West.
Foreign monitors have been granted access to the vote count.
"We've done everything so that there aren't complaints from the Western side. We accommodated their requests," President Alexander Lukashenko told reporters after casting his vote in Minsk.
The last parliamentary elections in 2012 were boycotted by the two main opposition parties. Of the 448 candidates running this time, 200 are from opposition parties.
Relations between Belarus and the West have improved since the recession-hit country held a peaceful presidential election last October in which Mr Lukashenko won his fifth term with a landslide 83.5% of the vote.
The release of political prisoners and Mr Lukashenko's role in hosting Ukraine-Russia peace talks have also boosted the international reputation of the veteran leader, who was once accused by the the US of running Europe's last dictatorship.
The European Union ended five years of sanctions against Belarus in February, while the US has also relaxed some of its restrictions, saying that more will be dropped if Sunday's vote is fairly handled by the authorities.
But opposition candidates are not confident of success.
"I am convinced that not a single opposition candidate will make it through  to parliament," Belarusian Popular Front Chairman Alaksiej Janukievic told the AFP news agency.
"There will only be lawmakers approved by the authorities."
The inevitable outcome of the election also means that not all Belarus citizens consider it a worthwhile exercise.
"I would have gone and voted if I felt my vote made a difference," businesswoman Irina, 37, told the Reuters news agency.
President Lukashenko has been in power since 1994, keeping the country strategically close to Russia.
But correspondents say that signs of strains in the relationship appeared during Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014  - and since then President Lukashenko has made overtures to the West.
An economic downturn in Russia allied to declining energy prices and sanctions have battered former Soviet countries including Belarus, where the economy retracted by nearly 4% in 2015.
Still Europe's last dictator?
EU and US to ease sanctions
Belarus country profile


Fire crews fought an "intense" blaze in Hampshire after the roof of a thatched cottage caught fire.

Seven crews from the New Forest and Dorset battled the blaze in Sopley, Christchurch at 17:41 GMT on Thursday.
Fire officer Sandy Thompson said the firefighters did a "fantastic job in salvaging most of the contents of the house whilst fighting the fire from outside".
The cause of the blaze is not yet known and an investigation is under way.
Derek Slade, a resident of Sopley all his life, called the fire "absolutely terrible".
He said: "We opened the front door and couldn't see across the road for smoke. It was absolutely chaotic.
"I told them I'd get a florescent jacket and stand on the corner to direct the traffic because it was a gridlock.
"Everybody chipped in and sorted it out.
"It gets you choked because it was a lovely place. It's a shock."
Mr Thompson praised neighbours who helped the firefighters.
"Once furniture was removed from the house, several villagers joined in the salvage operation," he said.
"It was a really good effort by all the local neighbours, and the furnishings were moved to a safe outbuilding.
"During the fire the chimney stack had become unstable so it wasn't safe for our crews to fight the fire from inside."
The cause of the fire is not thought to be suspicious.


Cuts to much of Cornwall's mobile library service have been given the go-ahead by senior councillors - leaving a single van on the road.

Under the plans, five vans will be reduced to one and the number of stops will be cut from about 600 to 200.
A new network of "micro-libraries" in pubs, churches and local shops was also to be established, councillors said.
Councillor Adam Paynter said he was confident it was the best way to manage the service in the future.
Cornwall Council said it needed to save Â£1.3m from the area of its budget that includes libraries.
Mobile services had been under review with officers from the Liberal Democrat-Independent unitary authority analysing how much each library visit cost the taxpayer.
Previously the council said one mobile service, which covered Tintagel, St Blaise and the St Dennis area cost about Â£39 per visit.
Critics previously said the proposals to end mobile library services would cut off a "lifeline" for people in rural areas.


Did Scotland's World Cup qualifying hopes suffer a major setback by only managing a 1-1 draw with Lithuania at Hampden Park?

Or will James McArthur's late header, after Fedor Cernych opened the scoring for the visitors with a crisp strike, be viewed as a priceless goal come the end of the campaign?
Former Scotland defender Willie Miller gives his marks out of 10 for Gordon Strachan's side.
Not much to do in the game apart from that one save from Novikovas early in the second half. Can't really be faulted for the goal. It was hit with power and at close range.
He was exposed a couple of times in the first half, but he's a powerful boy and he defended pretty well in the main. Had a hand in the equaliser as well with that long throw-in. He's a threat going forward.
In the second half, he lit up the Scotland performance and gave the stadium a bit of hope. Every Scotland chance seemed to come through him. He was excellent. A real plus on a grim night.
The Lithuania goal came right down the middle and the centre-halves had a big part to play in that. It was well worked, but the finger has to be pointed at the centre-backs. Beaten in the air in the second half as well and that could have been more danger for Scotland.
Does he get an extra point for the flick-on for the goal? Probably. He doesn't rate at all highly for his defensive qualities though. Hanley and Martin worry you, but is there better out there? That's the question.
Over-run in the first half and taken off injured at the break. Lithuania played some good football in midfield while he was on the pitch and just passed it by him and Bannan.
In the first half, the two sitting midfielders were overwhelmed. Creatively, he offered no real service. He was better in the second half, but I wouldn't agree with Gordon that he was terrific. He was nowhere near.
Very quiet by his standards. He is a talisman but not this time. This was nowhere near a performance that he will be happy with. Had a shot blocked but not a lot else. He's a very creative player, but it didn't happen for him.
Disappointing. He's in the team to get quality crosses into the box and to run hard down his side, but he didn't do it. His delivery in Malta was really good, but not here. I wasn't surprised when he was taken off.
Made positive runs in the first half and I don't know why he was taken off. He was positive and tried to cause problems with his pace and his directness. He was doing his best to try to claw Scotland back into it when he came off.
Had a couple of chances - a shot midway through the first half and a header in the second half. Not scored in 20 league games and didn't do enough. Gordon Strachan said he was outstanding. I doubt if many will agree with him.
Gets a high mark for his goal. Got himself in an unusual position for him and, even if it wasn't the cleanest of headers, it salvaged a point when the game looked like it was going away from Scotland.
Missed a great chance and it looked like it affected his confidence. He drifted out of the game after that.
Didn't have long to turn it around but had a great chance and didn't take it. He had a great sight of goal and either side of the goalkeeper and it was in. Frustrating.


Thousands of migrants and refugees continue to arrive at Europe's borders, but many are not going anywhere.

New barriers are in place - and violence flared up this week at the Greece-Macedonia border. The EU is split over how to tackle the crisis, before even more migrants arrive as the weather improves.
Syrians form the largest group by nationality - among the millions who have fled the country's civil war.
Despite some progress, the European Commission said in a report in February that full implementation of the promised measures "has been lacking". So what promises have been kept or broken?
Migrant crisis in depth
A major point of dispute is the EU's Dublin Regulation. It states that the country where asylum seekers first arrive has a duty to process their claim.
Greece and Italy - on the frontline of the crisis in the Mediterranean - have been heavily criticised for allowing people to cross their territory unregistered. Most migrants want to reach Germany or other countries in northern Europe.
Greece says it is overwhelmed by the influx, and demands that the burden be shared more equally among its EU partners.
The European Commission - the EU executive - is revising the regulation. But it says migrants must be registered on arrival in the EU.
The identification process has improved, Commission figures suggest. In Greece, the number whose fingerprints were included in a database rose from 8% in September to 78% in January. In Italy, the corresponding rise was from 36% to 87%.
But progress has been "slow", the Commission says, because of a delay in setting up "hotspot" reception centres at the EU's external borders. The registration process carried out there determines the next step: asylum, relocation or return.
Two of the new centres have been opened in Italy. In Greece, five were supposed to have been completed by the end of last year. The government says four are now operational, and it accused the EU of being slow to provide equipment and personnel.
Co-operation between Western Balkan countries on the migrants' route north remains "insufficient", the Commission says.
Unilateral decisions, such as border closures or restrictions, have created a "domino effect".
"The result is a de facto policy of refusal of entry by nationality or by intended country of registration of a request for asylum," the Commission complains.
Hungary set off the European "dominoes" last year by fencing off its southern borders.
The crisis threatens the existence of the EU's cherished Schengen passport-free travel zone, covering most of Europe.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) said the Greece-Macedonia border closure and Austria's controversial decision to impose a daily cap on asylum applications showed the EU's "utter failure" to respond to the crisis.
Macedonia - not yet an EU member - has been letting only a trickle of Syrian and Iraqi refugees through, keeping other migrants out.
Schengen: EU free movement deal explained
Greece rejects 'EU lies' over border controls
Migrants feel chill as Europe tightens frontier checks
In October, EU countries approved a plan to relocate 160,000 asylum seekers across the bloc, despite strong opposition from central and eastern European nations.
The aim was to alleviate the pressure on Greece, Italy and Hungary. But in December Hungary and Slovakia filed a lawsuit against the quota plan, at the European Court of Justice.
Progress, again, has been "very slow", the European Commission says. Only 218 migrants have been relocated from Greece - out of a target of 66,400 there.
In Italy, 279 have been relocated to other EU countries - but the target there is 39,600.
The relocation plan affects refugees from Syria, Iraq and Eritrea.
Only 12 member states have received relocated people, and five countries are yet to offer places.
HRW says the relocation plan has had a "poor start".
The Commission originally called for mandatory relocation of refugees across the EU, using a "key" based on country size and economic strength. But governments rejected that, saying it could only be a voluntary scheme.
Desperate migrants plead to escape 'hellish' Greek camp
The EU return system has been "harmed" by the failure of member states to deport swiftly those who have no legal right to stay, the Commission says.
Last year 3,565 migrants were returned in operations co-ordinated by Frontex, the European border agency. The figure does not include migrants sent back without Frontex involvement.
In Greece, there were 16,131 forced returns and 3,460 assisted voluntary returns of economic migrants, according to the European Commission. But the number "remains insufficient in the context of over 800,000 arrivals in 2015", it said.
Identification, again, is key to making the process work.
Another delaying factor is the absence of an EU-wide list of safe countries of origin, as proposed in September.
The EU and Turkey launched a plan in November to accelerate the readmission of migrants refused permission to stay in the EU.
In 2014, less than 40% of the irregular migrants who were ordered to leave the EU actually departed, the Commission says.
Who does the EU send back?
The EU has announced €10.1bn ($11bn; £7.8bn) to address the crisis and help the most affected countries.
Greece has been awarded €148m in emergency assistance, including €80m to help build reception capacity to house migrants and refugees via the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) and €21m via the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).
Africa and Syria would receive €2.3bn and €1bn would be allocated to facilities for refugees in Turkey.
On 3 February the EU approved an extra €3bn to help Turkey improve conditions for refugees and curb the flow to the EU.
Turkey uses refugee crisis to up the ante
Crisis in seven charts
A note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.


A 999 call from a learner driver whose driving instructor turned up late has been called a "ridiculous" waste of police time.

17 July 2013 Last updated at 13:34 BST
West Midlands Police have released a recording of the call to reinforce the message that dialling 999 should be reserved for genuine emergencies.
Ch Insp Sally Holmes said this kind of call keeps operators from dealing with "a genuine life or death emergency".
She said West Midlands Police receive more than 1,500 emergency calls a day.


Wakefield Trinity Wildcats coach Brian Smith has signed a new one-year deal.

The 61-year-old joined the Wildcats on a deal until the end of the season in May, with the club having lost 12 of their 13 Super League fixtures.
Smith guided them to fourth in The Qualifiers and helped them retain their Super League status with victory over Bradford in the Million Pound Game.
"I am ecstatic that Brian is staying for another year," Wildcats chairman Michael Carter told the club website.
"He is building a club here both on and off the field. He has committed to us and I have made a commitment to him.
"We have a real chance to build something special here and we need everyone on board to do that."


More than a million women in their early 60s have become poorer as a result of delays to their state pensions, according to a new study.

Researchers at the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) found that, on average, women aged between 60 and 62 were now £32 a week worse off.
As a result poverty rates among that group have risen sharply, it said.
But the IFS also said the savings, and extra tax from working women, meant the state was £5.1bn a year better off.
Public sector debt is £1.75 trillion and the government borrowed £46.2bn in the past financial year.
The government said its pensions policy was "fair and sustainable" and matched continuing rises in life expectancy.
However, the campaign group WASPI (Women Against State Pension Age Inequality) said the research was shocking.
"Once again, this shows that the government has implemented state pension age (SPA) reforms without adequately considering the full impact of these changes on the women affected," said WASPI director, Jane Cowley.
"Whether it is the 3.5 million WASPI women who were not given sufficient warning of rises to their state pension age, or the sharp rise in income poverty among 60 to 62-year-old women, the government needs to sit up and start realising that its changes have devastating consequences on the women affected."
The IFS study showed that many women in the age group already affected by the pension change have continued working.
But the effect of waiting longer for their state pension has, on average, outweighed the gains made by those who have continued to earn a salary.
Thus the female 60-62 age group as a whole was earning an extra £2.5bn a year, an average of £44 per week.
But the same group has also lost £4.2bn in pension and other benefits per year, or £74 per week.
Jonathan Cribb, of the IFS, said the new policy was clearly putting pressure on the budgets of some households.
"The increased state pension age is boosting employment - and therefore earnings - of affected women but this is only partially offsetting reduced incomes from state pensions and other benefits," he said.
"Since both rich and poor women are losing out by, on average, roughly similar amounts the reform increases income poverty rates among households containing a woman who has reached age 60 but has not yet reached her state pension age."
Looking at the worst affected individuals, the IFS calculated that absolute poverty rates - measured after housing costs - had increased from 15% of women aged between 60 and 62 to 21% of them.
It said there was no evidence that any of the women were in fact experiencing "material deprivation" -that is, people saying they cannot afford a range of important items.
Such families may have "smoothed" their spending over time, the researchers suggested.
Caroline Abrahams, at the charity Age UK, said the IFS figures were "extremely worrying".
"While it may have encouraged a number to work longer, many women in their sixties were simply not aware of the rise in SPA and, as was predicted by experts, they have either had too little time to make adequate preparations or have been unable to continue working due to ill health, caring responsibilities or unemployment," she said.
But the changes have boosted the government finances.
The IFS said that the savings to the public purse had been boosted by the extra income tax and national insurance payments from those women continuing to work, which meant the government's total saving was now running at £5.1bn per year.
The study said there was also an effect on single men in their early 60s, who used to be able to claim pension credit.
Under the rules, eligibility for pension credit is also being pushed back.
As a result, single men aged 60 to 62 are on average £21 a week worse off, the study suggests.
The long-standing policy of equalising women's state pension age with that of men, and then raising it for both groups, has become increasingly controversial.
The decision to equalise the SPA was first made back in 1995.
Many women who are being affected say they were never made aware of the changes, which have now come as a shock to them.
The process kicked off in 2010, with the plan to raise the SPA steadily from age 60 to 65 by the year 2020.
But then in 2011 the government decided to accelerate the policy.
The SPA will thus be equalised at 65 two years earlier in 2018, and then rise by another year to 66, by 2020.
Further increases to 67 and even 68 are in the pipeline.
With the process still under way, women currently qualify for their state pension at nearly 64.
A spokesman for the Department of Work and Pensions said: "More people are in work than ever before, including a record 9.9 million older workers.
"Women retiring today can still expect to receive the state pension for over 24.5 years on average - which is more than any generation before them and several years longer than men."


Chinese exports rose more than expected in February, adding to optimism over a recovery in its economy.

Shipments jumped 21.8% from a year earlier, boosted by strong demand from the US and South East Asia. Most analysts had expected a 15% rise.
Exports, which are a key driver of China's growth, have been hurt recently by a slowdown in its key markets.
Analysts said the data may be skewed due to the Lunar New Year, but added that the trend was that of a recovery.
"Exports in January and February were both quite strong. This shows a recovering trend," said Sun Chi, an economist at Daiwa in Hong Kong.
However, there was a big fall in imports, which declined 15.2% from a year earlier.
Analysts said that the Lunar New Year celebrations, during which factories and businesses in China are shut for days, played a key role in that decline.
Last year, the Lunar New Year was celebrated in January, while this year it was observed in February.
This meant that factories operated for fewer days in February this year than in 2012.
"Since the factories worked for a [lower] number of days, they imported far less raw materials than they would normally have done," said Dariusz Kowalczyk, senior economist with Credit Agricole CIB in Hong Kong.
"That is why you have to combine the data for January and February to see the real picture."
Mr Kowalczyk said that the combined data for the two months indicated a jump of 5.1% in imports from a year earlier.
He added that the the jump in exports for February might also have been much stronger if the factories had worked the usual number of days.