Aid founder warns more face poverty

The man who set up Dundee’s first foodbank when he was 19 said he is worried the coronavirus pandemic could push many more families into poverty and foodbank dependency through job losses and potential longer term austerity.

Concerns have been raised by former Dundee-based charity boss Ewan Gurr, who spent 14 years helping to set up and run foodbanks across Scotland – including seven years as Scottish manager of the Trussell Trust.

“There is a risk that people buying or over-buying food raises the likelihood of other people being pushed into food poverty,” Ewan said.

“But if people don’t have money in their pocket, it doesn’t matter if the food supply is there – they just can’t fill their cupboards.

“My major concern is not so much the food supply issue – it’s the economic issue.

“A lot of people are being made redundant or have had their lower restrictive income totally eliminated on the basis they have been paid off or are in limbo because of selfisolation.

“I think we’re going to see a massive increase in unemployment as a result of this.

“I think we’re going to see a massive increase in the number of people applying for Universal Credit.

“I think if we fall into another global recession, the big question is do we have another decade’s worth of austerity ahead of that?”

Ewan said that in recent years, the level of public donations to foodbanks had generally increased.

What had struck him in the past six months, however, was some regular contributors saying they could no longer do so because they were “stockpiling for Brexit”.

He expected a similar hit on donations if people were “stockpiling” due to coronavirus.