Record Food Parcels as Industry Warns of Long-Term Price Hikes
The SNP has said that both the Tories and Labour have to answer for making millions of people poorer with their commitment to Brexit, amid growing warnings about the long-term damage being caused by EU exit and Westminster economic mismanagement.
It comes as the Bank of England’s chief economist says UK households just “need to accept” they are poorer, with the food industry warning Brexit will continue to send UK food prices soaring even higher.
Businesses have reportedly been told that Brexit checks will add £400million to the cost of importing food, at a time when households are already paying through the nose with food inflation at a 45-year high. Food industry experts have warned new rules would “substantially increase food costs” for consumers from January.
At the same time, new figures from the Trussell Trust reveal that almost 3 million food parcels were handed out by food banks in the last 12 months – more than ever before. The damning statistics show that a total of 2,986,203 parcels were given to people in the UK between 1st April 2022 and 31st March 2023, with over a million going to children alone as the Tory-made cost of living crisis spiralled out of control.
📣 Last year, food banks in the @TrussellTrust network in Scotland distributed almost 260,000 emergency food parcels.
❗ This is the most parcels food banks in the network in Scotland have ever distributed in a single year.
We cannot stand by and let this continue. pic.twitter.com/199XEEIt2f— The Trussell Trust Scotland (@TrussellScot) April 26, 2023
– Graeme
These shocking figures from the Trussell Trust on foodbank are an indictment of Westminster’s mismanagement of our economy.
They lay bare the impact of Tory rule over Scotland, and the damage being done to Scottish Government efforts to eradicate poverty.
But we also have a Labour Party that is fully committed to the incredible damage of Brexit that is driving this food poverty.
The case for Scotland taking its place as an independent member state of the EU continues to grow and grow, but in the meantime people continue to struggle despite the SNP government’s best efforts with limited devolved powers.
Does the PM agree that the poorest "should just accept being poorer?" asks SNP MP Angela Crawley
"We are doing an enormous amount to support those who most need our help with the cost of living," replies Rishi Sunak#PMQs https://t.co/1McMcxrDAP pic.twitter.com/BpA2DH4PRG
— BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) April 26, 2023
