Grinning Tory MPs and Food Banks

Check out this article in "NewStateman" on "When Tory MPs  visit foodbanks - Armed with tins of beans and bags of sugar, elected representatives of this government have been posing alongside the damage they’ve done."

I do not for minute pretend that I am in any way neutral about the modern day Conservative Party but I am genuinely flabbergasted at their F...ing cheek.

In the article "Neil Coyle, the Labour MP for Bermondsey & Old Southwark who chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group on Foodbanks....

“Far and away, the biggest issue affecting foodbank use is Universal Credit,” he says.
On average, foodbanks in areas where Universal Credit has been in place for a year see a 52 per cent increase in demand, and foodbank use is up 13 per cent in areas where the new system has been rolled out for three months or less, according to the biggest foodbank charity the Trussell Trust.

“Turning up and grinning is simply, well, it’s insulting,” Coyle tells me. “Turning up and being practically supportive is what foodbanks need – and trying to work out how to reduce pressure on foodbanks would be the sensible thing to do.”

The biggest single reason for a food bank referral, accounting for 31 per cent in the six months leading up to November this year, was benefits not covering living costs. More than a fifth of referrals to its foodbank network resulted from delayed benefit payments – a third of which were waiting specifically for their first Universal Credit payment.

“If you’re going to engage with foodbanks in the run-up to Christmas, learn who it is they’re supporting and why,” says Coyle, who also refers to children in families that cannot claim benefits (immigration policy means “no recourse to public funds” for about 50,000 people with dependents) using foodbanks on an “almost routine” basis. “This is a direct result of government policy.”

Hat tip Anoosh Chakelian

Osborne plays a deceiving game

Hat tip to Bob S for his link to Facebook site "Fight Propaganda" who have dissected George Osborne's speech at the Tory Party Conference last week. Check the references below.

"With scores of economists indicating through open letters that Osborne is making bad financial decisions, and indicators of poverty rising sharply, It is impossible to see these parts of his speech as anything other than misleading propaganda.

Market crash not Labour: www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/former-bank-of-england-governor-claims-labour-government-not-to-blame-for-last-financial-crash-9948434.html Crash started in America: http://www.economist.com/news/schoolsbrief/21584534-effects-financial-crisis-are-still-being-felt-five-years-article

More debt than every Labour Government: www.politics.co.uk/comment-analysis/2014/06/17/the-coalition-will-leave-more-debt-than-all-labour-governmen

Slowest economic recovery since 1720: http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/Documents/quarterlybulletin/threecenturiesofdata.xlsx www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/britain-has-taken-longer-to-recover-from-recession-than-at-any-time-since-the-south-sea-bubble-9645218.html 

Homelessness up 40%: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/homelessness-statistics 

Food bank use: http://www.trusselltrust.org/stats 

Longest sustained decline in average wages since records began: www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/british-workers-suffering-worst-decline-in-real-wages-on-record-9789942.html 

Economist open letter: http://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2015/06/12/80-economists-say-osbornes-economics-make-no-sense-in-the-guardian/ 

Transcript of speech: https://www.politicshome.com/party-politics/articles/news/george-osbornes-full-speech-tory-conference"

The Bare Necessities of Life...

A member of my UNISON branch has contacted me about a new food co-operative, he is helping to set up in a foyer in Borough, South London.

Due to harsh benefit sanctions many of the young people who live in the foyer are dependent on local food banks and donations from nearby Borough Market to survive.

The Co-op has received a £500 "start up" grant from Southwark Council to buy such bare necessities’ as food, cleaning products, shampoo etc. at a low price which we can then be sold and money reinvested in stock so that there will be a continuous and sustainable business.

The project is being led by residents who will be involved in all aspects of the co-operative. Who will gain skills around running a business which they can then use when applying for jobs.

They have a website https://thebarenecessitiesgateway.wordpress.com and twitter account @the_necessities and would appreciate any help, support and publicity.

There is a big launch on Wednesday 17 June which I will miss since it clashes with UNISON NDC conference.

I think this is a fantastic initiative and wish it well.

Of course why the 5th richest country in the world allows vulnerable young people to go hungry in the first place is another issue.

UNISON Community Conference 2015

On the train back to London with UNISON delegates after our annual National Seminar and
Conference in Bradford.  See previous posts on the Seminar which took place immediately before here and here.

The Conference was chaired by UNISON Vice President Wendy Nichols. Community is the Service Group for UNISON members who work for Housing Associations and Voluntary organisations. We are the third biggest Service Group in the union and have over 60,000 members and I was there as one of the two National Executive Committee members for Community.

After the usual introductions, standing orders report and appointment of tellers the Annual Report was accepted and the debates on motions began.  There were 10 different motions which were debated. All were supported by the Service Group Executive (SGE) and all motions were agreed by Conference and are now our policy.  Including my branch motion on Union busting.  I spoke on the Pensions Composite (which was an agreed merger of two motions) on behalf of the Service Group Executive.

There was some incredibly powerful speeches made with delegates explaining their struggle to provide quality services while on the minimum wage or zero hour contracts. One speaker explained how she had to depend on food banks to survive. It was also pointed out that there was only 3 young members present (including Rachel from our branch) which is not good and needs to be addressed.

There was quite a controversial point put forward by one delegate during the debate on welfare reform that anyone who does not think that there is any difference between Labour and the Tories are "fools and liars".

This is now I believe our 5th Community Conference and I think we are far more confident and certain of our identity as a separate, independent and growing Service Group within UNISON.  We were pretty united as a Conference and aware of what we are up against and what we have to do to defend and represent our members. Key to this is trade union recognition, organising, recruiting more members and activists while ensuring that we have effective structures and local support.

(picture of London delegates speaking on motions and centre of June Poole moving Pensions compositive A)

When Christmas is a choice between eating and heating

We have had soup kitchens and shelters for the homeless for decades. But I despair that we live in a society that hundreds of thousands of UK children are dependent on personal charity to stop being hungry.

The cuts are getting worse, the safety net is being sold off and dismantled. Where is this going and where will it all end up? We are already suffering the biggest pay cuts since Victorian times.

· Statistics from The Trussell Trust show that there has been a dramatic increase in demand for food banks and charitable help in the UK, with more than 20m meals provided in 2013 – a 54% increase on the previous year.

913,138 people were given three days emergency food and support in 2013-2014, of whom 330,205 were children.

· 423 food banks have now been launched, with two new food banks being launched every week to support growing demand.

(hat tip recent email encouraging donations)

Michael Gove on foodbanks and how they are unnecessary if you are wealthy

aka the ultra Tory Boy

nuff said.