Week was opportunity to speak out about poverty

Last week was Challenge Poverty Week, with awareness events and other activities taking place across Scotland.

It was an opportunity to speak out against poverty and promote action to tackle it. It is a call for Parliamentarians to focus on policy which better supports the vulnerable, and to pledge action which seeks to reduce poverty and address inequality in our society.

Poverty in Scotland is increasing, from an already unacceptably high level, and we need to act to open routes out of poverty for those affected. Almost one in five people in Scotland lives in poverty, and one in four children. While the recent announcement on the Scottish Child Payment, albeit delayed, should be welcomed we need to see more action across areas like housing, employment and social security. UK Government policies on Universal Credit and the absence of a real Living Wage are compounding issues when action should be being taken to maximise benefits and increase support for those in poverty.

The UK position on leaving the EU remains unclear but there is no question that a no-deal Brexit would only present further challenges, with anticipated price increases pushing tens of thousands more Scots into poverty and requiring a significant upscaling of poverty mitigation measures. Paying for food, fuel and other necessities are only expected to become more difficult for families and individuals who are already struggling to make ends meet.

At our recent conference in Liverpool, it was clear that a Labour Government would bring significant positive change for individuals and families across Scotland and the UK, not least the pledge to end Universal Credit which is failing to deliver what it promised. Alongside announcements on ending in-work poverty and introducing a real living wage of £10 an hour, this is the kind of action which would really make a difference to families currently struggling to make ends meet.

Food insecurity continues to be a critical issue in Mid Scotland and Fife, and across Scotland, with the latest Scottish Health Survey showing single parents and single person households among the worst affected. The increasing use of foodbanks reflects this and measures to address inequality and poverty in our communities must include action to ensure rights to food.

As part of Challenge Poverty Week, I launched a campaign calling for the right to accessible, affordable and adequate food to become part of law in Scotland. The Scottish Government is planning to introduce legislation on food policy, the Good Food Nation Bill. This Bill offers an opportunity to embed the right to food in policy and practice by enshrining within law a right to food for everyone in Scotland.

I am writing to organisations across Mid Scotland and Fife asking them to sign up to a pledge calling for the right to food to be enshrined in law and asking the Scottish Government to use the forthcoming Good Food Nation Bill to make a commitment to a right to food as part of that legislation. I hope that organisations across the region will support this call and we can urge the Scottish Government to act swiftly on this matter.

Making accessible, available and adequate food a legal right would mean Governments were required to act to make this the case. It would ensure individuals and families across Scotland stopped having to choose between eating and heating, and would be an important step in addressing poverty and inequality.