Food Banks

John Glen Excerpts

Tuesday 19th November 2024 Westminster Hall

[Seamus Logan]

The hon. Member makes a powerful point; I completely agree, and I will refer to that later.

A quick chat with a volunteer can provide vital reassurance to those who need to use a food bank that they are not alone and that support is out there. I would like to share some brief testimony from those who have used the Aberdeenshire North food bank. One person said:

“The volunteers were fantastic, offering a chat and a shoulder to cry on. I suffer from depression as well and without the foodbank I don’t think I would be here today”.

That was from a former police officer who suffered delays to his employment support allowance and incurred significant costs associated with his transport. A local single parent who was forced to reduce her working hours after her child fell ill said:

“The people at the foodbank were wonderful, they understood and saved us.”

[John Glen (Salisbury) (Con)]

I represent Salisbury, where the Trussell Trust was founded. The hon. Gentleman is making an important point about the fact that the people who use food banks have many dimensions to their poverty. It is important that we address that, rather than believing that just by giving more food, we are doing people a true service in the long term. Ten years ago, the all-party parliamentary group on food banks looked at the deeper causes and how to build stronger foundations to stop people having to use food banks repeatedly. Does he agree that we should look at that now?

[Seamus Logan]

Yes, I agree, and I thank the right hon. Member, who is obviously well informed in these matters.

The generosity and kindness of food bank volunteers cannot be overstated. I impress on listeners to this debate that all the services and support from volunteers at food banks across the country are provided out of the kindness of their hearts and through the sacrifice of their free time. This hour and a half debate seems a small tribute in comparison with their efforts.

As demand surged for food poverty support during the covid pandemic, volunteers across the country answered the call. There was a massive increase in voluntary work and community spirit. Volunteers are a great credit not just to their local communities, but to the nation as a whole. I am taken aback by the volume of local organisations that work with and support the Aberdeenshire North food bank. Supermarkets, schools, businesses, medical practices and community groups, such as my local rotary club, come together all year round to support those who need it. That is truly inspiring. I also pay tribute to the referral organisations across the constituency. They often take a proactive and caring approach when they think that someone may be struggling. Although it is often a difficult conversation for both the referrer and the referee, it can lead to families being provided with much-needed food and invaluable support.

The scale of the operation involved, with so many nationwide and local charities working together to support the most vulnerable and provide nutritious food to families, is simply incredible. It is a massive volunteering operation from start to finish. Deliveries from volunteer drivers are received by volunteers at locations in community buildings, for example, that let out their premises to allow food banks to exist in a central location, where they sort donations and distribute parcels. Fundraising is also an important and year-long part of food banks’ operation. The funds go directly to maintaining the excellent service provided by the food bank. When transport links, even where they are available, are often long and costly, it is heartening to know that home deliveries are also provided in some cases.

Last week, the hon. Member for South Shields (Mrs Lewell-Buck) kindly sponsored an event involving representatives from Sustainable Food Places, a network that brings together food partnerships from across the UK that support healthy and sustainable food. In my constituency, Sustainable Food Places partners with Fair Food Aberdeenshire. Their services are a great help to those in need. They provide a food directory, allowing members of the public to see organisations in their area and across Aberdeenshire that provide help and support. That can be in the form of referrals and community larders and by sharing details of food outlets that offer reduced prices for children, allowing parents to get free food for their children when out and about.

The transformative impact of support provided by such organisations across Scotland, in particular, cannot be understated. A recent survey of residents that utilise support from the Good Food Scotland network of larders in Glasgow found that 61% are eating more fresh fruit and vegetables; 64% are able to cook more balanced meals at home; 35% have less need for food banks; and 63% describe higher levels of wellbeing. An average of £15 is saved per visit on groceries.

The timing of this debate as the months get colder—perhaps today is a good example—should be noted. Energy usage and associated costs will go up for families across the UK, and many will be worrying at home and at work right now about how to heat their home, afford food and give gifts to their friends and family this festive season.

I will now discuss food banks more generally in the UK and the measures that could be taken to reduce the need for them. Food banks have become a common feature across the UK—a stark symbol of the scale of food poverty across the country. The Trussell Trust, which operates the largest network of food banks in the UK, reported distributing 3.12 million emergency food parcels in 2023-24. That represents a 94% increase from just five years prior. That should give us all pause for concern and spur us into the actions that I will describe shortly.

However, it should be noted that although the Trussell Trust is the largest food bank in the UK, it does not encompass all food banks. Therefore, the figure of 3.12 million emergency food parcels being delivered is likely to be even higher when we factor in the work done by others. The escalating cost of living is a major driver in this worrying trend, with food prices experiencing a 19.1% surge in the year up to March 2023. That has undeniably fuelled the crisis. When food poverty is described as “household food insecurity”, 2022-23 figures show that the UK saw a startling 11% of its population—over 7.2 million individuals—in that category, grappling with food insecurity every day. That is a significant jump of 2.5 million from the previous year. Children bear a disproportionate burden, with 17% experiencing food insecurity, highlighting the vulnerability of our little ones.

Health issues, unemployment cuts and delays to benefits are issues that I have already mentioned. Food banks were intended as a temporary measure to provide emergency food aid, and they are a stopgap measure rather than a long-term solution. And here is the crunch: we need measures to reduce or even eliminate the need for food banks in the UK.

First, we need an essentials guarantee. Supported by the Trussell Trust and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, that would ensure that social security payments never fall below the amount needed to afford the essentials to live, including household bills, food and transportation.

Secondly, a robust social safety net is needed. That encompasses policy suggestions such as implementing a statutory living wage and dismantling austerity measures that have disproportionately impacted low-income households. Reforms to the benefits system, particularly addressing benefit delays, sanctions and the five-week waiting period for universal credit payments, are crucial elements.

Thirdly, the upcoming review into universal credit is a golden opportunity to realise important improvements that can be made, and I have mentioned those. The UK Government need to fully seize the opportunity to deliver on their manifesto commitment to abolish the need for people to turn to emergency food to survive.

Fourthly, strengthening the nutritional safety net for children and young people is necessary. That includes proposals such as automatic enrolment of eligible children for free school meals, as well as expanding eligibility criteria for the programme. Holiday programmes ensuring children’s access to food during school breaks are also in need of support. Ensuring that children get the healthy food they need, especially over holiday periods, is paramount.

Fifthly, we need to empower local communities. Another policy that could be explored is bolstering local safety nets through the development and expansion of dignified food aid models and moving beyond the traditional charity model. The models include affordable food clubs, social supermarkets and community kitchens offering choice and fostering a sense of community.

The Scottish Government have introduced many policies that have gone a long way to reducing food poverty in Scotland: the best start grant and best start foods, the Scottish child payment, which is described by charities as a game changer, child benefit, free school meals, free transport for under-22s, the school clothing grant, education maintenance allowance, child disability payment and adult disability payment.

Even policies that do not directly provide financial support for food provision can still indirectly reduce food poverty by giving households more breathing room and the ability to dedicate more money to buying healthy food. In Scotland we have the Scottish welfare fund, and I believe that in England there is a similar fund called the household support fund. The problem with the latter is that it does not have a strategic drive or intent; it is simply funding that is given to local councils, which are allowed to distribute it as they wish. Central Government strategy is vital. A future policy being discussed in Scotland is a social tariff for the most vulnerable, such as those on low incomes, the elderly and the disabled. Reduced energy costs for the most vulnerable in society could be transformative on poverty and would avoid people choosing between heating and eating.

I pay tribute to the work of the all-party parliamentary group on ending the need for food banks. I encourage all Members who are present but are not members of the group to consider joining. I thank hon. Members for attending the debate; I know that the continuing use of food banks troubles us all deeply and creates huge concern across the UK and in Government. I look forward to hearing contributions from Members and learning more about the incredible work done by food banks in their constituencies.

Finally, I echo an expression used by my party colleague Richard Thomson, the former Member for Gordon. He said that

“it is often in the worst of circumstances that we find the best of ourselves.”—[Official Report, 2 May 2024; Vol. 749, c. 215WH.]