Parties clash over ‘lack of support’ claim on free meals
ALABOUR motion to Hyndburn council criticising the government’s ‘lack of support’ in tackling holiday hunger has been condemned as “disgusting” by the Conservative group.
The motion, which also blamed ten years of Conservative cuts to the north for high deprivation levels was proposed by Coun Kate Walsh, who runs Hyndburn Baby Bank.
She rejected complaints from the opposition group that it was ‘electioneering’ and an attempt to ‘play politics’.
Recognising “the amazing community commitment” to providing lunch packs to hungry children during the recent half term break, it said: “Over 6,000 lunches were handed out to children by community groups.”
But it went on to say that it “regrets the decision by MPs who voted against extending the free school meal scheme over the half term and Christmas holidays”, a decision that “was a devastating blow to families who are struggling to feed their children who rely on the free school meals”, and raised concerns over “the lack of support by the Government to Hyndburn Council during Covid which has left the Council and Council Tax payer in deficit.”
Coun Sara Britcliffe, who voted along with Conservative parliamentary colleagues against extending free school meals, said: “To allude that I would vote to make children go hungry is unacceptable.”
She repeated her explanation that there were two different approaches to the issue, and the one she had favoured recognised that local authorities were best placed to respond to local families and need, with Hyndburn BC receiving £127,000.
“The leader of the council confirmed that no child needed to go hungry, not only over the half-term but over the winter,” she said. “Community hubs contacted me to find out where the funding was from Hyndburn council.”
Coun Paddy Short said he was “really disappointed” with comments from other Conservative MPs, saying they “had basically demonised families on a council estate” amid claims that free school meals vouchers were “effectively going to crack dens, without offering any proof whatsoever.”
“We shouldn’t be judging why children are hungry,” he added. “We should be feeding children who are hungry.”
Incensed Conservative group leader Coun Marlene
Haworth instructed her councillors to abstain from the vote.
She said: “This is disgraceful. There are no children who are going to go hungry. This is completely a political ploy, a motion thrown together with no facts. It’s totally out of date and it’s just to score political points.”
Coun Walsh acknowledged that parts of the motion, submitted on November 3, had been superseded by the government’s u-turn on free school meals.
But she added: “Are the Conservative group going to claim electioneering and playing politics every time they don’t like the truth?”