Cameron turned down available EU funded #foodbank help in today’s Evening Times -Tasmina Sheikh

BY: TASMINA AHMED-SHEIKH, SNP CANDIDATE IN THE EURO ELECTIONS

Most of us have, hopefully, had a great Christmas; enjoyed the presents, the toys, seeing family, the food. We certainly have. We are Muslims and enjoy sharing so many aspects of this special time of year with our friends, and of course the children have had lots of fun.

Speaking of food. In the fallout from Westminster benefit cuts through the Bedroom Tax, the sanctioning and withholding of so many Disability Allowances and the ever-rising price of food, Scots are suffering. As ever with Westminster actions, it is the poorest and most vulnerable who face the greatest challenges.

The Trussell Trust operates 43 food banks in Scotland and they anticipate providing food parcels to more than 2000 people during the festive fortnight. Between April and the end of November, they have helped feed 34,000 people; more than five times the total for the same period last year.

Other voluntary bodies are also seeing exponential rises in need. FareShare, run by the Cyrenians, distributes the food from supermarkets that has reached its sell-by date but not its use-by date. They expect to provide about 120,000 meals, nearly twice last December’s figure. The charity checks around all the homeless hostels, soup kitchens and children’s breakfast clubs and asks them what they can use.

These needy people are not only in socially deprived areas either. Affluent Dundee has the busiest food bank run by the Trussell Trust in Scotland.

Without those charitable donations, people would probably have gone hungry. We should all show our appreciation of what they do and support them as best we can.

But it shouldn’t need to happen. Surely in a civilised 21st century society, we must not tolerate such deprivation and need?

It gets worse.

Prime Minister, David Cameron, has rejected help from a European Union fund to subsidise the costs of running food banks. The Education Minister, Michael Gove, says it’s all down to financial mismanagement by families.

Playing to the anti-EU sentiment that is so rife in London and the south-east of England, some €26.4 million offered from Brussels was turned down. Yet again, the poorest and most vulnerable are pawns in a political point-scoring game.

While France, much the same size as the UK, will receive €443 million, Britain will draw down only €3.5 million. We can be confident that the UK government is not about to make up the other €22.9 million of its €26.4 million allocation.

To me, that sounds like nothing more or less than cutting off your nose to spite your face.

Scots Asians For Yes – Lets build a Scotland for the future of all our children

Today was a hot summer’s day with the thermometer in some places within Glasgow hitting a high of 27 degrees Celsius. The SAFY team set up the stall with the majority of the members fasting as it was the 4th day of the Islamic month of Ramadhan, to any other member of the public it was 13th July. 

It was a really good day as there were many people out shopping and there was a lot of interest in our stall perched on the pavement opposite Spice Gardens on Albert Drive in Pollokshields. Toni Giugliano managed to persuade an individual who was a definite no, to a very probable yes in TEN minutes using a factual argument. Having such a high calibre of Yes Advisors such as Toni and Tasmina Sheikh, Abdul Majid, Tahir Mohammed, Madni and our secret weapon, Makki Tahir, we refused to take no for an answer!

A high number of activists joined us for the first time such as Ghazala Ahmed, and again we were very lucky as they were mentored by the more experienced members of the team as they leafleted and canvassed on Albert Drive, Maxwell Road and the adjoining streets. It was also good to have Councillor Norman MacLeod join us as an opportunity to have an open air surgery and to talk to his constituents about any issues that they felt needed to be given a higher priority by the city council.

I thought this would be a great opportunity to share some of the photos from today that capture the team, and some of the cutest children that visited our stall and were so enthusiastic in wanting to be part of the photograph and the YES campaign.

Post by Nighet Riaz

Yes Pollokshields and SAFY stall

There will be a Yes Pollokshields and SAFY stall on Albert Drive this Saturday 13 July from 5-7pm.

Please do pop by to give us a hand or ask questions or request more information. We will have many experts, politicians, Yes Advisors and activists present.

Looking forward to see you there.

If you need any info please contact Tahir Mohammed 07412 469 957 or Nighet Riaz on 07886 640 365