Sir.
Britain is the world’s seventh largest economy and yet people are going hungry.
Half a million people have visited foodbanks in the UK since last Easter and 5,500 people were admitted to hospital in the UK for malnutrition last year .
One in five mothers report regularly skipping meals to better feed their children , and ever more families are just one unexpected bill away from waking up with empty cupboards.
We often hear talk of hard choices. Surely few can be harder than that faced by the tens of thousands of older people who must “heat or eat” each winter, harder than those faced by families who’s wages have stayed flat while food prices have gone up 30% in just five years.
Yet beyond even this we must, as a society, face up to the fact that over half of people using foodbanks have been put in that situation by cut backs to and failures in the benefit system, whether it be payment delays or punitive sanctions.
On March 5th Lent will begin. The Christian tradition has long been at this time to fast, and by doing so draw closer to our neighbour and closer to God.
On March 5th we will begin a time of fasting while half a million regularly go hungry in Britain. We urge those of all faith and none, people of good conscience, to join with us.
There is an acute moral imperative to act. Hundreds of thousands of people are doing so already, as they set up and support foodbanks across the UK. But this is a national crisis, and one we must rise to.
We call on government to do its part: acting to investigate food markets that are failing, to make sure that work pays, and to ensure that the welfare system provides a robust last line of defence against hunger.
Join us at www.endhungerfast.co.uk.
Yours,
Anglican Bishops
1. Rt Rev Stephen Patten, Bishop of Wakefield
2. Rt Rev David Walker, Bishop of Manchester
3. Rt Rev Tim Stevens, Bishop of Leicester
4. Rt Rev Andy John, Bishop of Bangor
5. Rt Rev Tony Porter, Bishop of Sherwood
6. Rt Rev Paul Butler, Bishop of Durham
7. Rt Rev Alan Wilson, Bishop of Buckingham
8. Rt Rev Alan Smith, Bishop of St Albans
9. Rt Rev Nick Holtam, Bishop of Salisbury
10. Rt Rev Tim Thornton, Bishop of Truro
11. Rt Rev John Pritchard, Bishop of Oxford
12. Rt Rev Steven Croft, Bishop of Sheffield
13. Rt Rev Jonathan Gledhill, Bishop of Lichfield
14. Rt Rev Michael Perham, Bishop of Gloucester
15. Rt Rev Alastair Redfern, Bishop of Derby
16. Rt Rev Lee Rayfield, Bishop of Swindon
17. Rt Rev James Langstaff, Bishop of Rochester
18. Rt Rev Martin Warner, Bishop of Chichester
19. Rt Rev Mike Hill, Bishop of Bristol
20. Rt Rev Martin Wharton, Bishop of Newcastle
21. Rt Rev Peter Maurice, Bishop of Taunton
22. Rt Rev Gregory Cameron, Bishop of St Asaph
23. Rt Rev Peter Burrows, Bishop of Doncaster
24. Rt Rev Stephen Cottrell, Bishop of Chelmsford
25. Rt Rev John Holbrook, Bishop of Brixworth
26. Rt Rev Martyn Snow, Bishop of Tewkesbury
27. Rt Rev David Urquhart, Bishop of Birmingham
28. Rt Rev John Holbrook, Bishop of Brixworth,
29. Rt Rev Nick Baines, Bishop of West Yorkshire
30. Rt Rev Pete Broadbent, Bishop of Willesden
31. Rt Rev Paul Bayes, Bishop of Hertford
32. Rt Rev Graham Kings, Bishop of Sherborne
33. Rt Rev Stephen Conway, Bishop of Ely
34. Rt Rev Brian Castle, Bishop of Tonbridge
35. Rt Rev Jonathan Clark, Bishop of Croydon
36. Rt Rev John Inge, Bishop of Worcester
37. Rt Rev Phil Topham, Bishop of St Asaph, Wales
38. Rt Rev Richard Blacburn, Bishop of Warrington
39. Rt Rev Andrew Watson, Bishop of Aston
Methodist Chairs of District
Loraine Mellor, Nottingham and Derby
John Hellyer, South East
Jenny Impey , London
Michaela Young, London
Stuart Jordan, London
Bruce Thompson, Lincolnshire
Lionel Osborn, Newcastle Upon Tyne
Revd Richard Teal, Cumbria
United Reform Church Moderators
Paul Whittle, Eastern Synod
Simon Walkling, National Synod of Wales
Clare Wood, Assistant General Secretary for Quaker Peace and Social Witness
Helen Drewery, General Secretary for Quaker Peace and Social Witness
sarah Hughes says:
February 20, 2014 at 11:13 am -
People employed and unemployed are struggling to pay the bills and eat as wages have not gone up and working people have had their working tax credits stopped if they earn over 16000 pounds and in my situation by the time i pay full rent full council tax I am left with under half my wages so this new message by central government is it pays to work well I am many others are not feeling the benefits I am working now to keep a Roof over my head and food on the table and that always a struggle and I am one of the people the government say should be better off and feel no better off working due to all my working tax credits being snached from me
Donna says:
February 20, 2014 at 11:55 am -
Half a million visiting food banks….but that’s just part of the poverty picture. How many people like myself and my husband are subsidising their family members. Both my children and our grandchildren would regularly go hungry if we did not help out with their food bills or other household bills. Some days my daughter feels ill, I ask her why, she says she hasn’t eaten all day as the only food that was in the house she had to give to her two year old. My son visits regularly for evening meals as he is so hungry as he hasn’t been able to feed himself during the day whilst he works…giving what money he has to keep a roof over his 6 month old daughters head!
We are not rich people, we too struggle to pay our way, each month we fall behind that little bit more with our repayments, bills, savings etc…having to adjust our food intake continually.
My daughter lives with her two year old son is studying to be able to fulfil her ambition of becoming a nurse, my son works hard in a thermal spraying workshop leaving at 6.30am returning at 5pm 5 or 6 days a week, my husband is a project manager for an international company earning over £45,000 pa…we live in a semi detached house in a normal street…and all of this, all this hard work dedication and willingness to get on in the world and we ALL still struggle to survive!! We feel as a family in each of our separate lives that we have been heavily penalised over the last 5 years, reduction after reduction, hike after hike….on April the 4th I will do my bit and I guess many others will too but can you seriously see this government take note? I fear not….to many fat cats looking after themselves and not the people they are supposed to be looking after!! And as for the future….who are we going to vote for?? I see none of the government officials with strong leadership skills, strong moral standards…I only see an ever increasing gap between the fat cats and the average guy in the street. So very sad!
lilan harrison says:
February 20, 2014 at 5:32 pm -
I am very sorry but Donna does not cut any ice with me. Her husband earns in excess of 45K a resonable salary, so her whine that it isn’t enough falls on deaf ears. She doesn’t say if she is working or not – if not why not if money is tight? She mentions her daughter who is training to be a nurse, so presumably her daughter isn’t earning. Who does Donna think should support the grand-daughter? The tax payer I suppose;. and I also note that Donna doesn’t mention a son-in-law, so who fathered the child, what is he contributing – nothing probably. And if the son is working he should be able to provide for his child too and where is this child’s nmother? Forgive me for saying that when man ignores Gods’ laws disaster follows e.g. children born out of wedlock.
I am sorry Donna but this pathetic moan seems to be founded on envy and the belief that the world owes you a living. Welfare is for those who have genuinely fallen on hard times through no fault of their own. not the lazy or workshy.
Karin says:
March 7, 2014 at 8:36 am -
Such a compassionate answer, Lilian!
Donna’s son seems to work hard, but like so many he isn’t paid enough. We have no idea why her son and daughter are not living with their children’s other parent, perhaps they were married but the marriages didn’t work out. £45k is not great wealth, especially if trying to save for retirement and take care of 2 adult children.
Do not judge, seems to be the wisest course of action here.
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HENRY says:
February 20, 2014 at 2:39 pm -
I have been a food bank volunteer for over a year. In that time I have witnessed genuinely desperate people, often expressing their shame at having to approach the food bank.
Witnessing the extreme need of these people is heart rending. The Bishops & others are correct, in most cases benefits have been delayed or suspended often for the most trivial of reasons.
A significant number of those in need are in the position of being a sole trader in a business with cash flow problems and/or a rapid fall in customers using their service. This also gives the lie to the falling unemployment figures.
The Government must take action to control profit margins in the food market, ensure a living wage is paid and adjust the level of rent paid to the profiteering independent landlords.
Sandi McDONAGH says:
February 20, 2014 at 5:21 pm -
As a foodbank volunteer, I have seen people in genuine distress and need. Delays in benefits are punative and the most needy are being kicked again. What about the well off and companies who owe taxes who’s kicking them?
Liz Cannon says:
February 20, 2014 at 7:28 pm -
As an Anglican priest I am so pleased that our bishops and church leaders have spoken out in this way.
Revd. Arturo says:
February 21, 2014 at 12:07 am -
The problem is global
Sila Collins-Walden says:
February 22, 2014 at 3:18 pm -
I agree, I am delighted that bishops and church leaders are speaking out!! We need more of this to come from the church. Politicians are ignoring the poor, the sick and those who through no fault of their own find themselves in dire need. As a Quaker we are joining forces together with all faith groups to speak out against this appalling treatment of the people in Britain, one of the most richest countries in the world. It’s time we attacked the people responsible for the” mess” we are in. Bankers, financial institutions and the companies that avoid paying tax!!
Martin Warner says:
February 21, 2014 at 7:22 am -
As a committed Christian committed to practical social action, whilst I applaud the concern for the vulnerable expressed in the letter my reading of the Bible is that it is the Christian community not the Government who are responsible for ensuring there are no needy in the community. See in particular Acts 4 32
Surely this is a God given opportunity for the Church to rediscover its mission, and it us encouraging to see this beginning to happen
L1lan Harrison says:
February 21, 2014 at 1:40 pm -
Martin, As a committed Christian I think you have got it right. But The scripture is not an open invitation for people to sit down with begging bowls waiting for the handouts. The Bible also says that man “shall eat bread by the sweat of his brow” – i.e. he works for his living and also “that the man who fails to provide for his family is worse than an infidel”. Where does that last sentance leave the feckless fathers who impregnate women, often very young women and having taken their pleasure scarper and leave the result for others to pay for. And the lack of a moral compass in this Godless land has led to a proliferation of girls willing to sleep around and deliberately get pregnant in order to get a house and financial support. The culture of entitlement and dependancy really must be addressed no one has a right to a free lunch. The responsibility is to provide for those who honestly cannot provide for themselves. But if that is to happen there must be some way of separating the genuine from those who work the system.
Jusus Himself said that we would always have the poor among us.
BTW I find the leftists among us squeal like stuck pigs whenever changes are made to the education system but unless the level of skills and literacy is addressed some will find it impossible to obtain work due to their poor education. Not all teachers are up to the job, but boy do they make a noise when the govt. tries to improve standards.
Karin says:
March 7, 2014 at 8:45 am -
Lillian have you not heard that Jesus said that the second greatest commandment is ‘love your neighbour as you love yourself’? Indeed this is how we show our love for God; by being compassionate with ourselves and with other people, espcially the poor and needy, the hungry and the marginalised.
Thankfully the welfare laws of this country were designed with that commandment in mind. The feckless few may make it seem like welfare encourages ‘scroungers’, but they really are in the minority, although some sections of the media do their best to pretend otherwise.
No one with any self-respect would choose benefits whey they can work. If someone has lost their self-respect to such a degree that they would rather live on benefits than work we need to ask why.
Foodbank Volunteer says:
March 1, 2014 at 8:26 pm -
Well said Martin. If every Christian (32% of the world’s population) truly ‘spent’ themselves on behalf of the poor in our nation and the nations…there would be no need for letters like this. Pray for our leaders.
Karin says:
March 7, 2014 at 8:49 am -
The problem with the church helping the poor, while commendable, is that is usually in the form of charity, which it is demeaning to receive. The idea of the welfare system is that each pays into it according to their means and is entitled to take from it according to their need, so they can hold their head up high because they are not in receipt of charity. There is nothing to stop individual Christians and churches finding ways they can donate to the welfare pot, though. Perhaps this avenue should be explored!
Ann says:
February 21, 2014 at 11:55 am -
As a Foodbank volunteer in the North East, I, like many other volunteers, have witnessed the real distress suffered by very vulnerable people in an area of high unemployment where work, even before this recent financial crisis has traditionally been hard to find. I have seen, too, the unstinting generosity of the ordinary people of this area – older people, the middle aged, young men and women – a whole range of people willing to help out in dire circumstances, folk of the North East who are showing government what it is to have good hearts. People who recognise the human, and who are not obsessed with power politics at any cost.
Julie Anne says:
February 21, 2014 at 1:25 pm -
Lilian I found your comments rude & judgemental , bringing up gods law & wedlock etc etc . Who are you to judge someone you dont know !. I too earn £40,000 a year but even I am struggling , following a divorce & after paying rent, council tax , utilities , loans & other outgoings I have little left & I subsidise my son who brings home less than.minimum wage & my daughter , who I help with university fees etc. If I cant manage how can those with next to nothing manage. I am also a nurse & an oncology nurse & I see the stress that an atos assessment brings, this govurnment is cruel !
Lilan says:
February 24, 2014 at 2:44 pm -
Julie Anne
Sorry you don’t like my comments, however 40K IS a reasonable salary, a lot more than mine, and I am certainly not starving, you are doing very nicely thank you., . From your comment you obviously are or have been living above your means if as you say you have debts. Utilities do have to be paid; but subsidising an adult son and daughter is a choice, generous of course, but perhaps they need to learn to be more self sufficient. Students can take loans payable at a later date, and a son can live simply. And what contribution does the father of your offspring make toward their welfare. Divorce doesn’t let him off the hook surely. As to unmarried and unsupported single, mothers where are the men who father the children, they should be forced to face up to their responsibilities too. I guarantee that a lot of welfare recipients and food bank beneficeries smoke, drink alcohol, have big t..v.s, Skye, mobile phones, I-pads/pods etc. etc. This govt. isn’t cruel, no-one has a right to live off the state or more accurately the tax payers and I am glad that the govt is at last addressing the problem. the feckless and workshy need to get off their bottoms and support themselves. Welfare should be only given to those who through no fault of their own are in GENUINE need. I am sick of the attitude of envious folk who think that those of us who have worked hard should go without to finance the the massive welfare bill. And what exactly does your occupation have to do with anything, nurses, even those working on oncology wards, are no special case, work is work regardless of the nature of it. We have developed a culture of “it’s my right” and dependancy; the loony left has a lot to answer for, they opened the door to unlimited immigration and we all know the mess that has created.
Karin says:
March 7, 2014 at 8:56 am -
Lilian, I take it you’re not a great fan of John 13:34-35 either:
34 ‘A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.’
I understand love is better translated compassion. To me compassion is the mark of the Christian.
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Richard says:
May 31, 2014 at 2:37 am -
Lilian, I so agree with you! £40,000 (or £45,000 as in the other response) is a very reasonable amount to earn. I am a single man, living in rented accommodation. I have all the bills that everyone else has – rent, council tax, electricity, water oh, and food and I earn £5,000 a year and for the benefit of Karin, I do not get any Social Security benefits and yes, I am a Christian. I work for the church in my paid employment. I see on a regular basis the struggles that folk go through and I see the genuine cases of hardship however, I also see those who think that they are badly off when in fact, they could take the old adage “cut your coat according to your cloth” and find that actually they are quite wealthy.
I know of so many who claim to be “poor” and have not enough to eat or are unable to feed and clothe their children – but they have the latest iphones in their pockets; broadband on massive televisions in their homes; manage a week or two away in some foreign land on holiday; they can be found propping-up the bar on a nighttime and not forgetting of course, buying their Lottery tickets each week! Somewhere, their priorities are most definitely in the wrong place.
“No one with any self-respect would choose benefits whey they can work” – get real, Karin! There are too many who know their way around the Social Security system and are able to claim State benefits that keep them out of the “poorest in Society” bracket. How many of the respondents on this page are actually living in the under £10,000 a year bracket and have done for more than 12 months? How many can actually say, with true conviction, that they really do understand and empathise with those who are genuinely in need?