Hungry Britain

Panorama on now

So scary, people are actually going hungry and have NO food

In some cases people are handing back some of the food donations because they cannot afford to heat the food.

I live in a beautiful part of East Anglia but there are several food banks as mentioned in today's paper

http://www.eadt.co.uk/news/politics/ipswich_suffolk_the_60_year_olds_forced_to_shoplift_to_stop_stave_off_hunger_newborns_needing_milk_and_a_woman_94_relying_on_food_hand_outs_the_reason_suffolk_needs_foodbanks_1_3389067

One of the problems is the benefits system. If people get into temporary work it often takes too long when they want to get back into the benefits system and they have a gap with no income.

And today I heard that benefits claimants who are sanctioned find themselves with no money, but that when they appeal the sanction the majority win.

https://fullfact.org/live/2014/mar/why_more_people_use_foodbanks-29875

Unless they have aspergers and starve themselves to death because their benefits have been cut.

falseeconomy.org.uk/blog/theres-still-time-to-persuade-your-mp-to-attend-the-wow-debate-on-thursday

I put this link on the Adult Aspergers thread earlier in the day. It seems very fitting here. It's to get the govt. to agree to looking at the links between cutting benefits and being hungry.
Wasn't Edwina horrible again. She can never admit to the slightest fear that she might be wrong. Just like IDS. I noticed he mentioned Oxford in the Panoramam programme. The man who died because he had his benefits cut lived in Cameron's constituency.

There are no words!

Many people that are using the food bank are down on their luck, lost jobs etc, it could happen to you because no income = bad circumstances.

We should all be doing more to help such people.

My take on it is to educate and guide these people to better times.

"Educate and guide" people, carnationa? Could you expand on that?

Lots of them are educated. They just do not always earn enough to afford food. They are sanctioned for ridiculous things like being asked to be at two interviews at once. One woman was sanctioned because she was in a coma and did not turn up for an interview.
As explained on the programme, once sanctioned it takes time to have a review and get your money back. In the meantime what do you feed the kids on if you have them?
Did you watch the programme, carnationa?

Chocolatepudding, I read about some food banks up in the north that have three different sorts of bags.
One normal one, one for people who can afford to boil a kettle, so have things like the potnoodle type meal that Edwina Currie sneers at, and a cold one for people whose power has been cut off.

I agree, what I mean by educate is some people just need a bit of guidance when it comes to managing money. The Government now have a website called Mum. all about managing your money.

It must be so difficult for these people that get sanctioned through no fault of their own, especially if they have children. It should not be allowed if there are children involved.

sometimes it's hard to believe that this is all happening in 2014 England

Britain, please...

Worked on benefits for many years and a lot of people do not have simple budgeting and cooking skills that could help their money go further. Historically we learnt these skills from our parents but now I think we need to teach these skills in schools.

whats the difference England Britain? I don't understand

I agree seaside I do not understand why cooking was stopped in schools.

You don't understand the difference between England and Britain, carnationa?

No hungry people in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland then...?

Not all schools, carnationa. Food and Nutrition is still taught in many secondary schools.

Oh sorry, yes of course

Carnation, there are food banks in Wales, Scotland and N.Ireland as well, which are not part of England

Yes I get it now Of course there are food banks in Wales etc, but I did mean all of the UK

Did you watch the programme, carnationa? That's what Edwina said, that they need to budget better. You cannot budget if you haven't got anything.
The man with Aspergers who died after his benefits were cut did not know that he had to reapply for his housing benefits because he did not open the letters. Nobody had told him he could appeal. He weighed five and a half stone when he died.
falseeconomy.org.uk/blog/theres-still-time-to-persuade-your-mp-to-attend-the-wow-debate-on-thursday
Please get your MP to attend the debate on Thursday. At the moment there are lots of anecdotes about people in poverty, but nobody is collecting the figures about the effect that the cuts are having on people.

I know durh but I do not like Edwina much, she was a bit heartless, what could she possibly know about poverty.

Needing to earn better budget skills does not apply to EVERY person using food banks but just some, and as you said if you have nothing, what exactly can you budget.

I just feel so sorry for these people, its hard, so hard.

What good is a web site teaching budgeting skills to a mother whose benefits have been cut and who can't pay her electricity bill, never mind afford a computer?