Free Meals

Riverwalk

I think they will do a U-turn, how can they not?

Well it all depends on Cummings doesn’t it? Or are there people still seriously deluded enough to think Johnson makes decisions?

My children were all entitled to free school meals. We lived in a quite a middle class area - and lived in our own (mortgaged) house. My husband - with high professional qualification - was unable to get a job (desk one), as he was in a wheelchair - back in the 70's & 80's no disabled employment law). I have since learned that my eldest daughter, never had any lunch when she was in secondary school as she refused to go through the humiliation of being separated out to receive these.
we did not smoke, but did have a colour tv, our own very nice, new build house AND even managed to run a car (with disabled Dad and six children that was imperative.
I suppose people like Gwyneth would dismiss us as being feckless parents. I would repeat what is said in To Kill a Mockingbird about not making comments until you have 'walked in their shoes'.

Yes, we had six children, (last one adopted), like the house, came before my hubbie became disabled. I can remember the frightening times of trying to make a small amount of food stretch a very long way, or even deciding whether milk or bread should be purchased on some days,

Due to their experiences all my children (and they all went through full education including Uni) are now employed in what would be considered Service work - Education, NHS, etc). All have good careers, although in this sort of work none of them will make a fortune - but all remain caring, empathetic people and help out with such things as food banks, etc. etc.
I also know that many poorer people today do not even have cooking facilities, even those that do, may not be able to afford to use them at times. so provision of food items that require cooking are not really very helpful

From the owner of the pub:

"Anyone with a decent moral compass would realise that for a government that has spent £12bn on a Test and Trace system that doesn't work, to not fund food for hungry children is ridiculous and can't be allowed to happen."

sooziewoosie, I can confirm that Marcus Rashford is indeed a genius football player. Everything else you say about him is also true. He's a national hero.

Footballers wages in the big clubs are high, that's market value. Their careers don't last long, it's a young man's game. Our local chippie is run by an ex professional player. Also, most clubs have strong links with charities and do a good deal of charitable work which isn't publicised. Many individual players contribute both time and money.

Has any one seen the HoC menus? We subsidise the food with our taxes and the prices are astoundingly low. The government handing out contracts to its pals who have no track record eg in PPE/track n trace. That's only one scandal amongst many. To continue the football focus, it's beginning to look as though the government has lost the dressing room.

It's just been on the news that Sunak has been banned from his local pub for voting against the bill!

£7,000 a day for track n trace “consultants”, stop employing one for a week to feed 20,000 children.
Good that restaurants and other businesses are stepping up, but they shouldn’t have to. Meanwhile the tories who voted this down are going back to their stately homes, mansions and swish apartments.

I think they will do a U-turn, how can they not?

FannyCornforth

I can't see them doing a U- turn on this, as to do so would be to admit that the current benefits etc are inadequate.

I hope that I'm wrong though.

But it’s going to run and run isn’t it ? Well done Dominic Cummings.

I can't see them doing a U- turn on this, as to do so would be to admit that the current benefits etc are inadequate.

I hope that I'm wrong though.

What this government has done regarding welfare for the poorest, when it is busy looting the tax payers and linings their cronies pockets with vast sums of money is nothing short of disgraceful.

Of course all the charitable work being done, suits the Tories as it relieves them of paying more tax.

Exactly Pantglas I know we’ve had this discussion before which is why I was the recipient of the nasty ‘predictable’ dig from Call. The ones criticising footballers salaries are never able to explain why they are a target and how in a capitalist society, their salaries should be decided. MR is an amazing young man - bright, articulate, caring, emotionally intelligent way beyond his years, clearly a good son and an extremely good footballer ( so I am told?). I imagine part of the continuing criticism of their salaries is to deflect attention from the utter and complete moral failure of this government on the issue of food vouchers ( and many other issues).

Undoubtedly we all have different experiences as children, and bringing up our own children. To post about those experiences is fine.

But when decided welfare services you do not base the decisions you make on personal experience.

The irony of one footballer petitioning the government for free school meals and then they’re all being slated for their salaries.....?

I don’t doubt that lots of them donate to charity (Juan Mata helped to set up one donating a percentage of their wages) along with all the other highly paid sportsmen- let’s not pick on footballers folks ?

Same maybe hardly sane

And then the sane tired old footballers are paid too much rubbish

Yep but it was inevitable - the petition after all has arisen because of the vote against the vouchers.

I thought this thread was entitled, Free Meals. It seems to have gone slightly off piste.

It’s just not fair is it ? Those meanie football players. Some may have more money than Jacob Rees Mogg

Of course many very successful footballers are black and from working class backgrounds - compared with nice white public school educated underpaid corporate lawyers/ hedge fund managers/investment bankers/ owners of private equity firms.

What’s predictable is criticising footballers for being overpaid. We live in a capitalist system - a market economy - the market decides what a footballer should be paid . Or do you want a system where the state decides this? Answer comes there none

So predictable.
?

⚽️⚽️⚽️ ???

Well, who would have guessed it
?

Why single out footballers as overpaid? Just why ? They didn’t vote against the food vouchers did they?

Gwynethhow do you suggest that we discover which children are going hungry and which have hard working parents? Personally I would rather feed all poor children regardless of their parent's ability to cope
And are you happy to subsidise MP's food and drink? because that is what the petition is about.

Signed.
DH also made the point that he hoped that Marcus Rashford's overpaid football contemporaries would contribute a small proportion of their salaries to help to fund this.