Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

‘People are going hungry’: Anger in Cornwall at minister who told families to buy value brands

Foodbanks and poverty campaigners in George Eustice’s Cornish constituency label his cost-of-living advice ‘ridiculous’

Colin Drury
Wednesday 04 May 2022 15:44 EDT
Comments
George Eustice says Tories have done 'what we can' for cost of living crisis

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A minister’s advice that families struggling with the worst cost of living crisis in a generation should buy “value brands” to save money has been labelled “ridiculous” by those on the front line of the squeeze in his county.

Environment minister George Eustice said that shoppers could “contain and manage their household budget” by purchasing “value brands, rather than own-branded products”.

And he even suggested that British families actually had it pretty good. “If you look at household spending on food in the UK, it’s actually the lowest in Europe,” he said. “Partly because we’ve got that very competitive market.”

But in his Cornwall constituency of Camborne and Redruth, those on the front line suggested the advice showed Mr Eustice was out of touch with the reality of people’s growing desperation.

“This isn’t about tightening belts,” said Tarn Lamb, chief executive of the Cornwall Neighbourhoods For Change charity based in Redruth. “People’s belts are already as tight as they can be. They’ve been buying home-brand products for years. What they’re doing now is going hungry or not heating their homes.”

Ms Lamb’s organisation offers a range of services – including employment support, parenting programmes and debt support – which brings her into contact with some of Cornwall’s poorest residents.

A weekly food larder – which gives away free fruit and veg, tins and dried goods to those especially in need – is seeing record numbers turn up. A clothing bank in St Austell has also experienced a huge surge in demand.

Tarn said: “It’s a crisis that is getting deeper, and suggesting buying value brands is the solution suggests that he doesn’t have any understanding of the extreme hardship people are experiencing because of this crisis.

“We’re seeing a lot of pensioners now. They are saying they cannot afford to buy a full week’s worth of groceries, and they find it deeply painful to come to us but they have no other choice.

“But there are also children going to school hungry because they have not had enough to eat, and people on benefits, who have been scraping by for years, who now don’t know where to turn.”

Asked for a better solution than society’s poorest saving a few pence on, for instance, a brand of bread, she suggested a windfall tax on energy companies making billions of pounds might be more effective.

“We need structural change,” she said.

The suggestion was echoed by Chris Wallace, who runs the St Ives food bank, based in Chy an Gweal in Carbis Bay.

“The idea that someone already eating only one meal a day can save money this way is ridiculous,” he said. “Foodbanks in Cornwall are under severe pressure because people cannot afford food full stop.”

He suggested the crisis had added to a homelessness surge in Cornwall, which has seen the number of people in temporary accommodation rise from around 270 last winter to 660 this year.

But Tory councillors in Mr Eustice’s constituency appeared to think his idea had merit.

“When prices go up, you have to look around and see how you can use your money in as economical a way as possible,” said Barbara Ellenbroek, Tory councillor for Redruth South and a member of Cornwall Council’s cabinet. “As far as I’m concerned, we all have to look carefully at how we spend our money. My preference is to shop locally because then it’s not as expensive and better for the environment.”

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in