Member

The independent 2021 national food strategy recommended a major awareness campaign, but nothing much was done. The Food, Diet and Obesity Committee was told that the legislation for the Healthy Start scheme does not allow for auto-enrolment and would need to be changed. Well, here it is: an amendment that would change the legislation. I am told that part of the problem is that information on eligibility needs to be obtained from the DWP and the terms and conditions need to be accepted by the recipient. Why can government departments not work together? This Government could make a significant contribution to decreasing food insecurity if they could get departments to stop working in silos. There is a major case for widening eligibility and the value of the scheme. However, this modest amendment does not do that; it simply asks the Government to work out how to remove the barriers and ensure that poor families get what they are entitled to.