Question to the Scotland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what plans he has to visit a food bank in the Glasgow South West constituency in October 2019; and if he will make a statement.

Work is the most effective route out of poverty and this Government is committed to helping people find work through a wide-range of support, targeted to each individual’s personal circumstances. While food banks represent an impressive response by civil society and faith groups to support vulnerable people, we are also committed to providing a strong safety-net for those who need it; that is why this Government continues to spend over £95 billion a year on welfare benefits which includes a well-established system of hardship payments, benefit advances and budgeting loans as an additional safeguard for those who need them.

I currently have no plans to visit a food bank in my capacity as Secretary of State for Scotland in October 2019.