SO WHERE EXACTLY IS ALL THIS POVERTY?
Poverty is a very subjective issue. It is an aspect of life that can so readily be used for political gain. The Left dish out so-called 'Hunger' as bait for the government and a sop to voters, particularly those in the north of the country who 'betrayed' their socialist roots and voted Tory at the last election.
I recall Jamie Oliver leading the march against unhealthy school meals some years ago now, can't remember what happened exactly, but if something did change it certainly wasn't long lasting. We are where we are, chefs on TV seem in general to be white so enter Sir Marcus of Manchester who leads the latest charge for nutritional change. That's not forgetting quality, value and volume of course.
This is everything the BBC's publicity machine could dream of, a famous footballer who shows his caring side, his concern for the welfare of others and with all his wealth still remembers his roots and his upbringing. But best of all, and this must have had the Beeb's executives salivating in their several course lunches, he's black! I have nothing against the fellow, he seems like a nice lad who cares for his mum, but where is this poverty? I am aware he lives in the north and the constant rain and over exposure of Lowry is enough to cloud even the strongest of souls' minds but not everyone up there is feckless... surely? Jumping on the 'They shall eat cake - and everything else that's free' bandwagon is a veritable army of chefs all very concerned with school meals, welfare and personal exposure.
What I would like to see published is an honest assessment of who exactly it is we are providing free meals for? Who is collecting handouts from food banks? Y ou can bet your bottom hard-earned penny that if the opportunity for free food wasn't available there still not be one person certified as having died of starvation. This assessment report would have several sections under various headings. There would be the usual questions, ie Name, Address, Age, Sex (Two choices only!), Colour, Place of Birth, Religion, Number of children, Homeowner or rented? and Working or unemployed? This last heading's answers would contribute greatly to any handout that followed - if any. I have no problem with genuine hardship being supported through state welfare assistance. What I object to is the long-term freeloaders who exploit every nook and cranny of the system in order to get the most for the least. Unfortunately the social conscience has over-ridden the desire for many to work, it's all too easy not to sadly.
The cries of those pleading poverty and calling for free everything should be met with the question as to why they feel the need to sponge off the taxpayer when they have three or four children with another on the way! If you can't afford them, don't have them!
Last summer when foreign labour was in short demand for varying reasons, UK farmers encouraged applications from Brits who need work. Our fruit and vegetables requires picking. It is hard work, it is repetitive and physically taxing. How sad then to read that so many farmers were let down by lame ducks who lasted a week, some a day and basically couldn't hack it. Hard work you see, not in their mindset. Wonder just how hungry their families were at the end of their non-working day?
As a footnote, a couple of years ago I was very kindly invited to give a talk to a ladies' group in a Hampshire coastal town. The club concerned had hired a community centre for their meetings and shared the hall space with a group collecting for a food bank. A member of their team was present that day and I enquired as to the genuine need of those who had partaken... or probably just taken... Anyway, she defended their course of action and its need but interestingly commented that several people collecting their un-worked-for loot rummaged through to check the contents before leaving and in many cases asked to swap items in their pack for an item in another. She also remembered one lady swopping a jar of coffee for another as 'She preferred Waitrose coffee to the Tesco she had inherited'! Bloody cheek, bloody unnecessary!
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