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"That is what it appears to be as running this campaign is one Justin Forsyth,"

You are confused.

This thread is about food banks. The reference you make is to a campaign just launched by the Save the Children fund on the issue of child poverty in the UK, particularly in those families where there are workers existing on the minimum wage.

Food banks are supported by a whole range of different organisations, many of them with a religious bent such as the Trussell Trust. As far as I know they have no connection whatsoever with the Labour party.

I think many people are left short through bad money management. Cigarettes now cost over eight quid a packet. Alcohol is quite cheap in supermarkets now, about ?7.00 for 8 cans. Spending money on things like that takes a big chunk out of one Benefits and will leave them short. I think it is wrong when people make themselves skint by spending on non essential items then for some reason they expect society to give them more money. Most people using food banks fall into this catagory. I've had a few times in my life where I was proper broke, in debt and so on, and I managed. I viewed it as my problem and I sorted it. One of the first things I would have done if I couldn't make ends meet would have been to have stopped smoking. Something many of these people would never consider.

It is obviously a bit closer to no. 3 than any of the others but I think many of these people are broke because of bad money management - as I described in my answer to 'dog' just now. There was one guy on the Newsnight programme who was going to the food bank because he has "fifty pounds a fortnight to live on after his bills were paid". That is basically food then and he could live on ?25.00 a week for food if he wanted. I've lived on less than that at times. We all had a discussion on here once before about how much someone could live on and I think we all established someone could get by on about ?15.00 a week or less if they really had to.

"Food banks are supported by a whole range of different organisations, many of them with a religious bent such as the Trussell Trust. As far as I know they have no connection whatsoever with the Labour party."

I would be interested to see one of these undercover type TV shows where a journalist secretly films at one of these food banks. There would be people there who are between Benefit payments, whose money has temporarily stopped whilst the DSS are processing the arrival of another kid or the fact they've moved house, but I wouldnt be surpised if a lot of them are people who would have enough money if they made it last and some would be complete free-loaders.

I spent some time living in Australia and there were similar type places in Sydney run by the Hari Krishna's. At these places one could get nice meals, deserts, all for free, and it was meant for down-and-outs who would otherwise have no food. More than three-quarters of the people who went were backpackers (mainly Brits) who just faniced eating for free so they would have more of their money left over for beer and weed. Lots of people in the backpapers hostel I stayed in used to go along.

I'm sure there are many who use these food banks in the UK in a similar way. Either bad money managers, freeloaders, foreign students, people here on visa's earning not as much as they hoped they would, and so on.

Interesting. I can well believe that.

Another thing mentioned on the Newsnight programme the other night was how one can get emergency crisis loans from the DSS. That will keep people going for a time, but many of the people were 'maxed out' on the crisis loans. I would have thought the crisis loans would tied someone over for a sufficient time while their Benefit application was being processed.

I remember seeing something on TV not so long ago about the working class areas of Glasgow having a shorter life expectancy than areas of Baghdad due to the very high levels of drinking, smoking and living on fried food. I've heard this said about many working class areas of British cities. "Going to the bookies" is quite rare in middle class areas - I can't think of many book-makers in Richmond, Kensington, Highgate, or Dulwich. You will find them wall-to-wall in Hackney, Poplar, Bermondsey and Canning Town.

Watch the first video on the link:

http://www.itv.com/news/2012-09-05/save ... in-the-uk/

And on the Radio the other day the reporter said we have to point out here that, 'Justin Forsyth, Chief Executive, of Save The Children was a former member/worker of the Labour government' this was on Radio 5 live while Justin Forsyth was talking about "FOOD BANKS" This is a lefty attack on the present Government, it is all over the papers, WHY? Who are the people saying the country is starving and pushing the agenda?

Read my post again. If you still dont understand it, tough.

I repeat for the last time as far as I know the providers of food banks have nothing to do with the Labour party. The Tressell Trust which is one of the biggest providers of food banks is a CHristian organisation.

Who could forget that best seller the Max Tranmere "Cookbook for the Unemployed" or how to live on ?15 a week - available on Amazon and all good bookshops for ?9.99.

A host of delicious recipies particuarly for those who like tuna and pasta!! It has a nutritional foreword from Mr Sam Slater - something on the lines of "this book will kill you if you stick to it too long" or something to that effect.

This book has pride of place on the Johnson bookshelf. It is worth it for the front cover photograph alone where Mr Tranmere's right hand is sliding in to caress Nigella Lawson's left breast as she bends over to whip up a carrot cake.

Don't get me started on Nigella's carrot cake. I can feel myself getting excited already.