Southland Food Bank Charitable Trust co-ordinator Ron Maynard said he had also noted an increase in the number of families needing handouts, which he attributed to a rise in the cost of living and the National Party coming into power.
"I think it is the times we are living in – since National (Party) come in it has got worse. That is one reason if you want to get political about it," Mr Maynard said.
Has National cut welfare benefits? Is National responsible for NZ experiencing a recession? Did National stop adjusting benefits for cost of living increases? Isn't it true that there are fewer people on benefits in Southland than there were 5 years ago, when Labour was mid-term?
Doesn't it just make you want to groan when people dealing with 'need' say such banal things? Instead of some serious analysis we get a political knee-jerk response.
Of course it is not the wont of food bank coordinators to question applicants. But perhaps they should be looking at the underlying reasons why the majority of low income people do not need their services, and a handful do.
3 comments:
wont
Saw this first thing this morning over brekkie and I'm still seething.
I do notice that now National are in there are a lot more stories on foodbanks that before, although we have just been through a recession!!!
There was a huge upward blip in unemployment and food banks in 2004 yet this never gets mentioned.
While googling Mr Maynard to see if there were Labour links, I find the following which is quite interesting though full of lefy language - "food security" - give me a break.
It seems from this report that there is always an increase in food bank reliance during the Christmas-January period. Would have taken a jounalist 10 seconds to find it.
http://www.cpag.org.nz/resources/publications/res1123805616.pdf
Every year the Methodist Social Services Trust and other charitable organisations in and around Palmerston North run an annual food bank drive. My wife and I often contribute our time and vehicles to assist in the collection of donations.
I never cease to be amazed at the amount of food collected which fill the enormous warehouse's. The exercise is of military proportions and involves hundreds of people and vehicles.
By the middle of the distribution year the call goes out for more donations and photo's show dwindling stocks to highlight the plight of the needy.
Last year in the Manawatu there were reports in the local paper of Students having to resort to the food banks because they were suffering hardships in the so called difficult financial times.
Food banks and the welfare state go hand in hand. The more we give the more they take.
I no longer get involved.
Dirk
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