Poverty own goal

MPsbetraypoor– andRashford

IF PROFESSIONAL footballers had behaved as petulantly, and shamefully, as some MPs did during this week’s debates on Covid- 19 lockdown and Marcus Rashford’s campaign to end child food poverty, there would be a national outcry – and, potentially, questions asked on the floor of the House of Commons.

Unfortunately the public, and all those families living in extreme poverty as Covid financial hardship takes its toll, have no such recourse to the acrimonious exchanges – Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner used the word ‘ scum’ to describe a Tory opponent – and the holier than thou sanctimony both of main parties as they traded statistics and insults.

But the greater scandal is, in fact, this name- calling – and bitter slanging match involving Bradford MP Naz Shah and others – overshadowed the need for constructive and collective action to provide free school meals to the most vulnerable youngsters during school holidays, and further action to alleviate poverty. Did no one realise?

And, frankly, some MPs showed contempt for Mr Rashford’s campaign in which the Manchester United striker has used his own childhood experiences to galvanise support, in a non- partisan way, for the plight of youngsters going hungry through no fault of their own and to provide practical help where he can.

As he stresses with both eloquence and humanity, this should not be about politics. Yet this is precisely what happened in Parliament – the debate became party political – and those Tory MPs who voted against the additional provision of school meals now have to answer to their constituents, consciences and also Marcus Rashford.