The Archbishop of Canterbury says that he has found the plight of those starving in the UK as 'shocking'.
Food Bank
The cost of living is set to be a major fighting point when it comes to the general election next year, as more families are relying on food banks than ever before as they struggle to feed themselves and their families.
Justin Welby has compared his recent experiences of those struggling to eat in the UK and in the Congo, and has called the plight in Great Britain 'more shocking.'
Writing in the Mail on Sunday, Welby wrote: "I found their plight more shocking. It was less serious, but it was here. And they weren't careless with what they had - they were just up against it.
"The scale of waste in this country is astonishing. As a nation we discard about 15 million tons of food a year, at least four million thrown out by households."
The rising cost of bills compared to the stagnation of wages has led to many household going without food so they can keep a roof over their heads and the lights on.
The Hunger and Food Poverty inquiry has discovered that there has been a rise in people in Britain relying on food banks compared to 2011-12. The Trussell Trust is one of the charities that is providing people with emergency food, and they have seen a rise to 913,138 of people needing help: with is up seven fold.
Earlier this autumn, the government was accused of ignoring evidence that suggested that welfare reforms were leading to a rise in the use of food banks.
The study was commissioned by the Church Of England, the Trussell Trust food bank network, Oxfam and Child Poverty Action Group and called for urgent changes to made to the social security system to help people from falling into poverty and turning to these food banks for help.
Welby has praised the work done by food bank volunteers, who are working tirelessly to try and give people as much help as they need.
In the Mail on Sunday he continued: "This extraordinary achievement has been done without the assistance of central government. If the Prime Minister wants to meet his Big Society, it is here."
It is a national disgrace that in the year 2014, many people of Great Britain are having to rely on the generosity of food banks to feed their families and get by.
The government may be slapping itself on the back because the economy is growing quicker than expected, but there are still many people in this country and need help to get back on their feet, and it looks like this current government is reluctant to admit that this is a real problem.
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