The following amendments have been selected: amendments 1, 2 and 3 in the name of Darren Millar.

The next item this afternoon is the Plaid Cymru debate on food poverty. I call on Luke Fletcher to move the motion.

Motion NDM7862 Siân Gwenllian

To propose that the Senedd:

1. Notes that almost a quarter of people in Wales are in poverty.

2. Further notes that the use of food banks was increasing before the COVID-19 pandemic, has effectively doubled during the pandemic and all indications are that this situation will continue to get worse.

3. Acknowledges the profound, devastating and enduring consequences of food insecurity on the health, wellbeing and livelihoods of people.

4. Calls on the UK Government to support the right to food campaign, which is particularly critical given the cost of living crisis faced by so many across Wales.

5. Calls on the Welsh Government to explore all options on ensuring that the right to food is embedded in cross-governmental policy approaches to poverty.

Motion moved.

Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. Yet again, we have another debate tabled around poverty, a long-standing issue for this Senedd, and there are known and undeniable links between poverty and food insecurity. Given that almost a quarter of people in Wales are in poverty, it is no surprise that food insecurity is a prominent issue facing many households in Wales. There are, of course, positive actions on the horizon: free school meals for all primary school children, for example, something that, as a former recipient of free school meals, I'm immensely proud of. Knowing that, soon enough, every primary school pupil will be in receipt of free school meals and that my party and the Government came together, despite our differences, is very much something that truly moves me. And when it happens, it will no doubt be one of the proudest moments of my political career.

But I'm sure it won't surprise Members to learn that I think we still need to go further. Free school meals didn't end for me in primary school, but we have taken the first step in enshrining food and access to food as vital parts of the education experience, and that, of course, at its base level, is what we are trying to achieve with our motion. The right to food should be an inalienable right for all citizens, not just in Wales, but globally. We can't survive or thrive without it. That's why the right to food should be embedded in all policies relating to poverty.

Poverty is one of the clearest and largest factors contributing to food insecurity, and poverty has only been increasing in Wales following years of austerity, stilted economic growth following COVID-19 and Brexit, and increasing prices. We are seeing a crisis of food poverty born out of the political choices and systemic failings created over the past four decades that have brought us to a tipping point in so many of our communities. This, of course, when Wales finds itself part of the UK, one of the richest countries in the world.

In 2017 and 2018, nearly one in 10 people in Wales experienced low food security, and 14 per cent of people ran out of food before they could afford to buy more. The south Wales food poverty alliance found that households with incomes in the bottom 20 per cent in Wales would need to spend 36 per cent of their income to meet the UK Government's Eatwell guide. More people in Wales have to change their eating and buying habits for financial reasons than the UK average, and marginal food insecurity is also higher in Wales than in any other UK country. Our welfare system, our social protection system, is clearly failing to protect the most vulnerable in society by not providing enough for the necessity of food to those who need it. To truly tackle food poverty, there must be systemic change. Increasing welfare payments or support for food banks does not tackle the root cause of the issue or provide people with the dignity they're entitled to. 

If I could turn briefly to the Conservative amendments for one moment, simply getting more people into work will not solve the issue if this employment is not good or fair. More than a fifth of workers in Wales are earning less than the real living wage, and in some areas in south Wales this rises to a quarter or even a third. The majority of people living in poverty in Wales currently are in work, and one in six people referred to the Trussell Trust foodbanks in the UK were in work, which demonstrates that employment is not a guarantee out of poverty. The amendment also mentions the UK Government's Kickstart scheme for 16 to 24-year-olds who are on universal credit. It provides funding to employers to cover the national minimum wage for six months, but the national minimum wage for 18 to 20-year-olds is £6.56 an hour. How is this supposed to help a care leaver, for example, set themselves up on their own and not be worried about where their next meal will come from? It's nowhere near enough. 

On the topic of children and young people, I wanted to raise the issue of child poverty and the impact of food poverty on children. Households in Wales with children will experience more financial pressures from rising food costs and poverty than those without children. The Food Foundation estimated that there are roughly 160,000 children in Wales for whom a healthy diet is increasingly unaffordable. Three weeks ago, on 17 November, I raised the issue of Welsh child poverty in this Chamber, where I noted that, over the last financial year, 54,000 foodbank parcels went to children in Wales, compared to only 35,000 during 2017 and 2018. At that same rate, as of today, more than 3,000 food parcels would have gone to children in Wales since I made that statement. And this, of course, assuming the situation hasn't worsened, which many indicators suggest it will continue to do. 

Dirprwy Lywydd, I hope that my comments have been taken by the Conservative benches as constructive and not party political, and I say this because I think this is an issue that transcends party politics. Indeed, it is a cross-party issue. Everyone should have secure access to quality, nutritious food. I think that's something all of us can agree on, no matter our political persuasions. It's very much the philosophy of Baobab Bach in Bridgend, for example, it's the philosophy of Bridgend College, who provide free school breakfasts to their students, and it's the philosophy of other community organisations working on food poverty across Wales, many of whom we have all visited and previously mentioned in this very Chamber. 

In my closing remarks, I want to illustrate the importance of the Right to Food campaign and its cross-party nature, and pay tribute to the work already under way in Westminster by both Beth Winter MP and Ian Byrne MP, who I first met virtually at a People's Assembly panel on this very issue. Both have been working across parties to get this on the agenda in Westminster, gaining the support of Plaid MPs, SNP MPs, Labour MPs, Conservative MPs, Lib Dem MPs—and I'll stop at that point, because I think Members will get the picture there. I hope this, of course, can be replicated here in the Senedd. The fact is, we owe it to all of our constituents who live in food poverty every day of their lives to come together here and solve this issue. Diolch. 

I have selected the three amendments to the motion, and I call on Mark Isherwood to move amendments 1, 2 and 3, tabled in the name of Darren Millar. 

Amendment 1—Darren Millar

Delete point 2 and replace with:

Believes that every human being has a right to a nutritious and adequate food supply.

Amendment 2—Darren Millar

Delete point 4 and replace with:

Further acknowledges that the UK Government has increased the living wage and is spending over £111 billion on welfare support for people of working age in 2021/22.

Amendment 3—Darren Millar

Add as new point at end of motion:

Further calls on the Welsh Government to work with the UK Government in delivering its Plan for Jobs including the kickstart programme, aiming to create full-time jobs to reduce the risk of poverty.

Amendments 1, 2 and 3 moved.

I move amendments 1, 2 and 3. As our amendment 1 states, every human being has a right to a nutritious and adequate food supply. Every day, people in Wales go hungry because they're in crisis. There are many reasons for this, including low income, debt, access to benefits, substance misuse and mental health.

As foodbank network the Trussell Trust state, statutory organisations are often not able to respond quickly enough to these needs, yet a short-term crisis can easily escalate into difficult and costly long-term problems such as housing loss or criminal activity. Having been made aware of the problem of hidden hunger by a local mother, the trust founders, Paddy and Carol Henderson, launched the first Trussell Trust foodbank from their garden shed in 2000. They went on to develop the principles that still hold firm today: all food should be donated, and volunteers should be entitled to administer the food and provide non-judgmental emotional support. The first associated foodbank was launched in Gloucester in 2004.

When I first met the Trussell Trust, well over a decade ago, they told me that their goal was to open new foodbanks in every UK town. I attended the opening of the Flintshire foodbank in Mold, the first Trussell Trust foodbank in Wales, nearly a decade ago. In 2014, the Trussell Trust launched an essential new programme, More Than Food, which brings other support services into foodbanks, partnering with other charities and services to offer advice on benefits, housing, budgeting, even legal advice. Alongside the Trussell Trust, the Independent Food Aid Network includes over 500 UK independent foodbanks, committed to a future in which good food is accessible to all. Bringing together the charitable, public and business sectors with communities, foodbanks provide a co-productive solution to an enduring issue.

In five months' time, Labour will have been running Wales for a quarter of a century. The Joseph Rowntree report on UK poverty published in December 2018 stated that of the four countries of the UK, Wales has consistently had the highest poverty rate for the past 20 years. Last November, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation's 'Poverty in Wales' report stated that

'Wales has lower pay for people in every sector than the rest of the UK' and that

'Even before coronavirus, almost a quarter of people in Wales were in poverty.'

Research carried out for the UK End Child Poverty coalition published this May found that Wales has the worst child poverty rate of all the UK nations. Successive Labour Welsh Governments have failed to close the gap between the richest and poorest parts of Wales and between Wales and the rest of UK, despite having spent billions entrusted to them to tackle this on top-down programmes that did not do so. Had they done so, of course, they would have disqualified themselves from further funding.

In 2014, after another meeting with the Trussell Trust, I stated here that the trust

'told me that foodbanks are an expression of something that has been going on in the churches forever, namely feeding the hungry.'

But food poverty has been with us forever. It asked that we all worked together, putting aside whatever party political differences we may have, to focus on those in need. They told me that they would be putting this message to all parties and all agents. I pledged my support and I said to the Minister then, 'I urge you to do the same.'

UK Government measures, of course, include increasing the living wage, spending over £111 billion on welfare support for people of working age this financial year and delivering its plan for jobs, including the Kickstart programme aiming to create full-time jobs to reduce the risk of poverty. Our amendment 3 calls on the Welsh Government to work with the UK Government to deliver this in Wales. In addition, UK Research and Innovation, sponsored by the UK Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, has commissioned a research project on co-production of healthy, sustainable food systems for disadvantaged communities, led by Reading university. Working together with disadvantaged communities, this will establish effective methods for co-creation of policy, products and supply chains that can be implemented across the UK nations. As a result, every citizen will have the potential to make decisions about their food and will have access to a diet that is affordable, attractive, healthy and environmentally sustainable. We therefore call on the Welsh Government to ensure that the right to food is embedded in cross-governmental approaches to poverty. Diolch.

This is a terribly timely debate as we are in the grips of what is already a difficult winter. Citizens Advice figures show that one in five people have already cut back on their food shop in the last three months to save money. One in 10 anticipate having to access crisis support this winter, like foodbanks or fuel vouchers. Crisis support, that is, to help them have things that they need to stay alive, because food isn't a luxury, it's a fundamental necessity.

I'd like to focus a little on the mental health toll taken by hunger, because hunger doesn't just mark people physically, it isn't only measured in stunted growth or empty bellies; hunger starves people of happiness, it warps their self-esteem and it eats away at their potential. Hunger traps people in panic and distress as the constant worry about where the next meal is going to come from weighs down on a person's state of mind. It scars people psychologically and it can trigger exhaustion, embarrassment, guilt and shame.

This is a reality faced by frightening numbers of people in Wales. The 'Food Security in Wales' report showed that a fifth of our population worried about running out of food. In the past 12 months, 14 per cent of our population had run out of food before they could afford to buy more. Now, this debate focuses on the right to food, and along with food I'd package in the right to dignity and a life free from the worry about food. As the Trussell Trust's Susan Lloyd-Selby has said, no-one should face the indignity of needing emergency food. But too often in our society, poverty is instead paraded almost as a punishment.

Let's cast our minds back to last year, when the societal debate around free school meals in England made headlines, and pictures of the measly portions afforded to children in some local authorities were shared on social media. We saw halved peppers in clingfilm, handfuls of tuna or pasta in paltry little plastic bags. It seemed for all the world as though the people putting the packages together must have been instructed to limit any chance that other people in the child's family could benefit from those packages. Why else put in part of a vegetable, or open a tin of tuna and scoop out only half? It would have taken an effort to be that cruel. It would have taken time to methodically measure the exact amount of compassion and support that was afforded to each child with those parcels, limiting everything, keeping a cap on that kindness. And what message did it send? Because free school meals and food generally isn't just about nutrition. As important as that is, it should also be about a sense of plenty, of not scraping through and getting just enough to just about manage. It should be about delighting in food—not gorging or gluttony, but having enough, feeling complete.

Our relationships with food are complicated. It can be a comfort when there's enough, but it can be a menace and a torment when there isn't. The children's future food inquiry quotes Siobhan Clifford, a headteacher, in saying that children tell you about

'pains in their stomach…about going to bed hungry...headaches…tiredness…and the distorted relationship with food that that creates'.

Some children end up stealing food from the bins that other children have thrown away. There shouldn't be that dividing line that sets out that some people can have more food than they need whilst others struggle to be sustained. Environmentally, economically, socially and morally it makes no sense. It results perversely in both food waste and wanton food scarcity. Those children stealing from bins.

Dirprwy Lywydd, we need to look at our supply chains, create an affordable, sustainable food system fit for future generations, supporting local markets, co-operatives, community retailers, processors, distributors that work together to ensure high quality food standards. But whilst we're developing those supply chains, let's look as well at the links that bind us, the stock we keep of decency. No-one should go to bed hungry or driven to despair through worrying about where their meals come from. In twenty-first century Wales or in any country, it's a blight that shouldn't exist.

Food poverty exists. It certainly exists in east Swansea. What has surprised me has been foodbanks starting up in what I always thought of as the rich suburbs of west Swansea. Of the eight wards in Swansea East, six of them have foodbanks. The two that do not are very close to foodbanks in the neighbouring areas. The use of foodbanks was increasing before the COVID-19 pandemic, has effectively doubled during the pandemic, and all indications are that this situation will continue to get worse. Foodbanks in Swansea are recent; that is, mainly post 2010. Most are run by religious organisations—churches, chapels and the mosque—and others are run by people in the community who care for those around them. They have no other need than to try and help those less fortunate than themselves.

Since 2010, there's been a huge growth in foodbanks and the numbers attending. Part of this is driven by the gig economy and irregular hours. When you're working 30 and 40 hours a week and you're just about managing, when you go down to seven hours a week you're just about not managing. Of course, being ill is not allowed. That's why so many people have been unwilling to isolate during COVID. Their children would go hungry if they isolated, and that's been a problem that has not been addressed. 

If I had, 40 years ago, told my 21-year-old self that people would be going hungry in Wales, and that foodbanks were coming as the new soup kitchens, I would not have believed that could happen. I'd have said, 'Really, you don't mean 2021—you mean 1821'. People going hungry; remember those on the right who said, 'We didn't have poverty in this country, everything was okay, no-one is going hungry'. Well, that's changed, hasn't it? People are now food hungry. The cruel cut in universal benefit has made matters a lot worse for many families. I'll record a few examples of food poverty. The mother who had not eaten for three days so that her children could eat, who on being given food at a foodbank immediately opened and ate a tin of beans. The woman who told me that a way to keep your stomach full was to eat toilet paper, or other paper, which would then fill you up. Or someone asking at the foodbank for no food that needs heating because they cannot afford to heat it up. Welcome to twenty-first century Wales. 

It could have been different if the Lib Dems had decided to side with Labour and not the Conservatives in 2010, bringing in a decade of austerity. And 'austerity' is such a neutral word. What is has meant is many going cold and hungry. That's why many of us have been asking for free school meals to be expanded into the summer holiday. That's why many of us have been asking for the expansion of free school meals to primary school pupils, except those in fee-paying schools.

Finally, I donate and collect for the local foodbanks, and I thank the South Wales Evening Post for publishing my requests, and can I also thank all those people who give to help others? However, I look forward to a society where foodbanks are not needed, where no-one goes hungry. I've been told that this is a bizarre new utopia. I have said it isn't—it was what the 1960s and 1970s Wales that I grew up in was like, and I hope that we move back to that as soon as possible. 

It's a desperate situation where access to food is out of reach for many people in one of the wealthiest countries in the world. I welcome the commitment to free school meals in the co-operation agreement. I also welcome the commitment of the Government to universal basic income. A report published by the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales found that universal basic income would decrease overall poverty rates in Wales by 50 per cent, and child poverty would decrease by 64 per cent, bringing it to a rate of under 10 per cent. That's down from its current position at 28 per cent.

In preparing for this debate, I learned about food deserts, which actually describe one in five communities in Wales. If you live in a food desert, you will find it difficult to access affordable, fresh food. That could be because you're reliant on smaller shops which are local, which are obviously known to charge more for the same products. That's because you can't access reliable public transport. And that's the same in rural areas like Pembrokeshire or Ceredigion as it is in urban Cardiff.

And food poverty and food insecurity will be all the worse because of Brexit. Our farmers and our food producers are committed to producing good quality food, but they need support, not deals with Australia, which will deliver poor quality food. The situation is not just about food poverty. It's also a combination of Brexit, COVID and also climate change, and deep social inequalities, regional insecurities, and economic austerity and recession. This all means that those families already facing huge financial pressures, reliant on foodbanks, without access to fresh food, paying more in small local shops, will be hit hardest by the Conservatives' bad Brexit deal. It's going to spell trouble for families facing a cost-of-living crisis already; and for our food systems, it means that they are being undermined; for our retailers, who have had to have their calls to building greater stability ignored by Westminster. So, like last week, I'm going to urge the Welsh Government to go further and faster on ideas like universal basic income and a debt bonfire, to ease immediate pressures on families, as well as looking at what can be done to build food security and access to food into policies and planning in the longer term. I welcome the cross-governmental policy approach, in this motion, to food poverty, and I would also welcome a cross-party approach. The Trussell Trust's phrase is,

'We will create a UK without the need for food banks'.

And that's what we should all aim for. Thank you. Diolch yn fawr iawn.

The Llywydd took the Chair.

Hear hear, Jane Dodds. I completely agree with your final sentiment there. As we are all too aware from our own constituencies and regions, foodbank usage had been increasing for years prior to the pandemic, with the Trussell Trust reporting that the demand for foodbanks in their network increased 128 per cent between 2015 and 2020. During the pandemic, this has rapidly and significantly increased, with the Trussell Trust reporting an increase of 11 per cent in demand between 1 April 2021 and 30 September 2021, compared to the same period in 2019. In Wales, the Trussell Trust distributed over 145,828 emergency three-day food parcels to households in Wales over the past financial year. Let that figure sink in: 145,828 emergency three-day food parcels over the course of one year here in Wales.

In my own region of South Wales Central, I'd like to give just a few examples. Taff-Ely foodbank recently shared that from April to September, they gave out 1,163 foodbank parcels, and that 397 of these were for children. In October, the Vale foodbank noted that it had been open for 10 years, and during that time had provided 36,000 food parcels to local people in crisis. And please note the word 'noted', rather than 'celebrated' reaching this milestone, as there is nothing to celebrate in the fact that foodbanks have had to become so commonplace throughout Wales. I would hope that we are all united in the view that under no circumstances should foodbanks become an institutionalised fixture of Welsh society. 

These figures alone do not fully explain the scale of foodbank use in Wales, as the figures only relate to foodbanks in the Trussell Trust network, and not the hundreds of independent food aid providers and community groups also providing support, such as Rhondda Foodshare and the community pantry in Cilfynydd. And isn't is cruelly ironic that whilst 200,000 children and their families go hungry in Wales, we simultaneously have a huge issue with food waste, with approximately 500,000 tonnes of food wasted here in Wales annually? Globally, it is estimated that this is 1.3 billion tonnes of food wasted or lost each year—a third of all the total food produced for humans. I was horrified to read in a recent article in The National by Leanne Wood that at a recent meeting held between UK Government Ministers and major supermarkets, Tesco admitted that 50 tonnes of edible food was being binned every week due to driver shortages.

Whilst previous Welsh Government initiatives have successfully helped to reduce food waste, I'm sure we all agree that there is more to do, and measures the Welsh Government could explore to tackle the issue include encouraging all Welsh businesses to commit to target, measure and act on food waste; urging businesses in Wales to demonstrate their social responsibility by signing the Courtauld 2024 commitment to tackle food waste and support redistribution; and also, we could include food waste as a factor in the Welsh Government's economic contract.

I'd like to conclude my contribution this afternoon with a reflection on why I'm supporting today's motion. Whilst dropping off a few donations to a foodbank—something all of us have undoubtedly done—can be a visible demonstration of support to tackle food insecurity and hunger, as politicians, this isn't enough. Today's motion commits all of us to do all that is in our power to ensure that everyone has access to nutritious food to eat. No-one should be going hungry in Wales in 2021. Neither should food aid be replacing the dignity and choice afforded to those on higher incomes, such as ourselves. Whilst thanking foodbanks and their volunteers for all that they do, let us also commit today to working to ensure that they do not need to exist. That will be a time to celebrate.

I speak in support of the main motion, backing the right to food. The right to food was set out in the United Nations international covenant on economic, social and cultural rights, which the UK Government ratified way back in 1976, and it says: 

'The right to adequate food is realized when every man, woman and child, alone or in community with others, has physical and economic access at all times to adequate food or means for its procurement'.

It goes on to say that achieving food security for all is therefore a prerequisite for the realisation of this human right. On this definition—this legal definition—we are failing in the duties under the UN covenant on the right to food, as the growth in foodbanks is testament.

Back in 2010, when I was an MP, when Labour was then in Government, there was one foodbank operating in my constituency of Ogmore—one. It was in Bethel Baptist Church in Pontyclun. We now have foodbanks in every single community. Statistics from the Trussell Trust network highlight the growing demand for foodbanks since 2010 and the age of austerity. And over the past couple of years, it has deepened further by the impact of the pandemic. Some will say, as we've heard here today, that the growth in foodbanks in Ogmore and across the UK is, indeed, testimony to the generosity of volunteers and donations from the public. It undoubtedly is. But let's not hide from the fact that this is also a terrible, terrible, terrible indictment of a decade of punishing, punitive austerity and welfare policies that force the vulnerable, including working families, to rely on foodbanks. And it's a continuing failure, which has been made worse during the pandemic. Anyone who volunteers in a foodbank will say, 'This is a signal of failure by political leaders that they exist at all.' They have to be there; they do not want to be there.

Last year, the Trussell Trust provided its latest report, as has been referred to. It showed the deepening impact of the pandemic on those already devastated by a decade of austerity and social security cuts and diminished support for the low paid. It was bad enough through the 2010s, but foodbanks are now providing 130 per cent more emergency food parcels than they were five years ago. Distribution of emergency food parcels increased by a third on the previous year alone, with 2.5 million emergency food parcels in the twenty-first century distributed to people in crisis over the year. In Wales, the increase is up from nearly 88,000 five years ago to 146,000 emergency food parcels in Wales this year. It's an average of two parcels per minute distributed to families with children—a year-on-year increase of 36 per cent. In Wales, one parcel was given to a family every 10 minutes. This is a disgrace. And this is a tiny part of the whole sorry picture. Not included, as has been mentioned, are the additional over 500 independent food aid providers supported through the Independent Food Aid Network, as well as a range of community food providers also seeing similar patterns. Now, we don't have all the levers at our disposal in Welsh Government to solve this deepening problem, but we do have powerful tools that can help fill the hunger gap left by UK-wide policies. 

The additional £52 million funding from Welsh Government to ensure that eligible pupils receive provision in lieu of their usual free school meals whilst not able to attend school during the pandemic—that really helped, and I saw it on the ground in my own constituency. The additional £5 million for the school holiday enrichment programme too—I've visited those schemes in my own patch; I've seen them work and I've seen the good they do. I recently visited Big Bocs Bwyd—the BBB project—which covers the Valleys taskforce area. It's helping children develop an early understanding of healthy food choices, whilst providing affordably priced food to families in communities in need of support. We can see this in places like Garth school in the Llynfi valley in my constituency; it's making a positive difference already.

Of course, as has been mentioned, we welcome the announcement in the co-operation agreement between the Welsh Government and Plaid Cymru to put in place arrangements over the next few years to provide a nutritious free school meal to all primary school pupils in Wales—all of them—so that no child should ever be at school hungry, and the Welsh Government's support in my own patch for the incredible food pantry initiative in my area and other parts of the Valleys, delivering thousands of bags of affordable food to residents in Bridgend.

We need the UK Government to play their part; otherwise, we are always swimming against a tide that sweeps away the vulnerable and the low paid. But there is no doubt that we can also do much ourselves through an active Welsh Government, focused on food poverty as well as overall poverty, and the support of this Senedd. Let's make the right to food real for all.

Thank you to Plaid Cymru and Luke Fletcher for introducing the debate today. If I may, I'd like to use my contribution to expand the scope of the original motion away from just the impact of the cost of living on food poverty. It's important that we consider the wide range of socioeconomic factors that can influence whether a person can access food and what food they can access, and it's the very last point I made that I'd like to focus on in particular. It's something that has been discussed as part of my food Bill proposal, discussed in here not too long ago, which I'm pleased Members supported.

I know we all agree that food poverty is totally unacceptable and it doesn't need to be. We need to see action by all Governments to deliver a more prosperous future for all people, not just here in Wales but the UK as a whole. But in Wales we can do more. We need to do more—and I'm not going to try to find lots of people to blame—because these things are in our gift. As people in this place, it's in our gift to make a difference and to do things. Fine words are fine, but actions are what makes a real difference, and we have the power to do these things.

It was back in 2016 that a report from the Public Policy Institute for Wales argued that, and I quote:

'The rise in food poverty, perhaps more than any other arena of food policy, demonstrates the multidimensional nature of food and the challenges this creates for policy makers.'

I think this is why we need an overarching, holistic food strategy for Wales—one that brings together the various approaches. There are many third sector organisations across the country doing some fantastic work, but we could bring them together into a unified approach that deals with the structural issues as well as the socioeconomic ones. Because food poverty takes many forms; it's not just about the ability to buy food, but what food a person can access. There's a stark difference between the ability to buy fast food and ready meals, for instance, and the ability to buy and use good quality, nutritious food. This is where we need to consider how things like schools and colleges can improve food education, so that people know how to use food in a beneficial way, as I raised earlier this afternoon with the Minister for education.

We also need to consider how food producers can take more responsibility to ensure that their produce meets the well-being goals, as well as how we get this local, healthy produce to market stalls and supermarket shelves. This is where things like local food plans can play a role. And, yes, we do need to consider how we make this food more affordable and attractive to people, as well as ensuring that people can buy the food in the first place.

To conclude, Llywydd, I welcome the opportunity to take part in this debate today, and I hope Members have found my comments to be constructive. Ultimately, every human being has a right to a nutritious and adequate food supply, as Mark Isherwood pointed out in starting, but the causes of food poverty are complex and inextricably linked to the form and function of the food industry itself. If we are finally to tackle food poverty, that's where I think we need to start. Diolch.

As we approach Christmas, this debate is particularly timely, and we've heard those words a lot this evening. But it reminds us of those who will go with nothing over the festive period. For these people, there will be no gifts, no feasting—there won't even be hidden parties that they can deny they attended. The best that most can hope for is a roof over their heads, enough heat to keep them warm, and enough food in their stomachs to alleviate some of the pain of hunger. As this debate notes, almost a quarter of the people of Wales live in poverty. That is a frightening indictment of the status quo in this nation in the twenty-first century. It's also a strong motivation for us to call for change, and ultimately independence, because we can do so much better than this. The people of Wales deserve better than this.

The grim and meteoric rise of foodbanks has a Dickensian feel about it. It pains me that so many people in Wales are in poverty, and so many are unable to do anything about it. This is true of older people who are on a fixed income and have no opportunity to increase it. Foodbanks have been an important safety net for people on or under the breadline, but older people find it harder to access foodbanks due to mobility and accessibility issues. Hunger among our pensioner population is of particular concern to our health service, because undernutrition is one of the leading causes of functional decline and mortality among older people. Undernutrition in older people can lead to poorer health outcomes, falls and fractures, delays in recovery from illness, and longer periods in hospital to name but a few.

It's no surprise, therefore, that those entering hospital with undernutrition more than doubled in the seven years to 2017, with high rates among older people between 60 and 69 years of age. Since the publication of those figures, we've had another four years of a Tory Government in Westminster. Their reforms in the welfare state have led to significant cuts in public expenditure, social care for older people and in community services. This is having a direct impact on spending here in Wales. Once again, this is an example of the Tories in Westminster showing that they know the price of everything, but do nothing. As we saw over the past few days, they don't even know the value of being open and transparent.

To return to foodbanks, one of the most upsetting aspects of this operation are the food parcels that are ready to eat straight away. Why, you might ask, is this upsetting or even necessary? It’s because some people do not have access to cooking facilities, or are unable to afford to turn the electric or gas on to cook the food. How many pensioners will be facing this problem this winter due exorbitant fuel costs that are set to increase yet again this year? We should do better than this. We can do better than this. We must do better than this. Diolch yn fawr.

Thank you very much. Thank you very much for mentioning these people who are unable to turn on the cooker, because that’s something that I was told about when I visited the Building Communities Trust project up in Trowbridge and St Mellons recently—that some people are having to spend so much money on heating their damp homes that they don’t have enough money to pay for the cooker. I’m really worried about that, but also wanting to know a great deal more, because I think, whilst the oven is very expensive, turning on a cooker really isn’t using up that much gas or electric, and I really want to unpick this problem, because, really, people are not feeding themselves properly in the winter months if they can’t cook and eat a hot meal.

It really is a very, very significant issue, and one that I feel we really do need to unpick, because fast food is very expensive when you actually consider its poor nutritional value. And you have to compare—. It gives instant gratification, but it doesn’t nourish people. So, I think there is a lot of complexity to this problem, which I think was very much recognised by Peter Fox. This isn't just the appalling cut in benefits and the deliberate policies of the UK Government to keep benefits at a much lower rate than the increase in the cost of living, but I think it really is about changing our relationship with food.

I have a constituent who works tirelessly with young people, and has done for about 30 years, on getting them to do sports. He's one of a family of 12, and he said, 'Well, we were always poor, but we were happy at Christmas so long as we had some apples and some tangerines.' And in those days, tangerines were a rarity, not a year-round thing; they were a treat. One of the problems here is that we live in a society where there's so much plenty all over the place, and it's described to us on our television screens every single night and everybody can see it. Everybody watches television, even if they can't afford to turn the cooker on. That is part of the problem.

One third of all our food in this country is wasted. We cannot say that we live in the same sort of food desert as they live in in Eritrea or other places that are affected by climate change; this problem is much more complicated than that. That doesn't mean to say that the benefits aren't set deliberately too low, and that people are in these short-term contracts, zero-hours contracts that make it really, really difficult for people to budget, and they inevitably get into debt. That is one of the reasons why they have to resort to foodbanks, because they genuinely have had to use whatever wages they've had that week in order to pay back the debts that they've acquired when they weren't in work. That's one of the problems with universal credit: it goes up and down like a yo-yo, and there's so little certainty to it.

I just want to home in a little bit on the amendment by the Conservatives, because you've asked to delete the second paragraph of the motion, which talks about the rise and rise of foodbanks. I just wonder why you're not prepared to accept that there has been this rise and rise of foodbanks, because we can all produce huge amounts of evidence to say that there has been. I also think it goes back to something that I challenged Gareth about yesterday, which is about does the UK Government do child rights impact assessments. I'm sure they don't, simply because you only have to look at the way in which they've reduced absolutely the value of child benefit, which is the final thing that all mothers can rely on, even when everything else has gone out the window, when their relationships have broken down and they've had to flee a violent household. In April 2010, it was £20.30 for the first child and £13.40 for any subsequent child; now, it's £21.15 for the first child and £14 for subsequent children. So, that's an 85p increase in 11 years for the first child, and 60p for any subsequent children. And anybody who goes shopping will know that food prices have gone up hugely—hugely—just in the last few months as a result of us leaving the European Union, mainly, and yet—. That is one of the main sources of poverty.

You'll need to bring your contribution to a close now, please.

I will bring my contribution to a close. This is a complex problem and there's a great deal more that we need to do, but at least feeding children in schools—all children—is going to at least ensure all children are properly fed.

A few weeks ago, I had the honour to meet the volunteers at the Kings Storehouse foodbank in Rhyl. The Kings Storehouse in an independent foodbank run by volunteers from the Wellspring Christian Centre. It was founded in 2012 when the church saw people locally who had fallen on hard times, many through no fault of their own, and the church members rose to the challenge to try and assist. It was initially supported just by the members of the Wellspring church, who, every time they went shopping, would buy extra items of food or essentials and bring them to church each Sunday. They also have a trolley at Sainsbury's in Rhyl, where shoppers can have the opportunity to fill up the trolley and then proceeds are duly donated to the foodbank. It's also getting great support from local businesses, organisations and members of the public.

The implications of Plaid's motion and the perception amongst the wider public are that foodbanks shouldn't exist, or that they are a new phenomenon. This ignores the history, because churches and charities have always supported those in need within their communities. From the very founding of the Christian faith on these shores, helping those in need was at the core of the faith. Valle Crucis abbey in Denbighshire was established by Cistercian monks who grew food to give to the poor. Those entering monastic life gave up their worldly goods to pursue an oath of poverty, and any riches collected were used to help those in need. These principles have survived down the ages—

Will you take an intervention?

Yes, certainly.

Thank you. Do you think it is only the job of churches and voluntary organisations to provide the safety net, as you say, for those in most need?

Well, if the Member listens to the duration of my contribution, you'll see how it'll naturally come around to answer your query. [Laughter.] So, one must be patient, as they say. [Laughter.]

Today's foodbanks come in many shapes and sizes. In an ideal world, we would have no poverty, but we don't live in an ideal world. Sadly, families find themselves in hardship through no fault of their own, and, thankfully, foodbanks exist for these times. But the fact that these organisations exist has been weaponised for political gain. There is a public perception that foodbanks shouldn't be needed in today's society and that their existence is a result of political failings. This perception and stigma diminish the hard work of foodbanks like the Kings Storehouse and prevent—[Interruption.] I'm coming, I'm coming around. And prevents those in need from using the services. And foodbanks shouldn't be demonised.

Even if a quarter of our population weren't living in poverty, there would be still times that people needed a helping hand. This is what Pastor Mark Jones of the Wellspring church taught me on my visit to the facility in Rhyl, he said, 'The foodbank's motto is "A hand up, not a handout," as we understand that anyone can go through a time of crisis that requires short-term intervention, and no-one should be ashamed of receiving the help they need.'

Would you give way on that?

Yes, certainly. Certainly.

Could you simply explain to me, who has seen the rise in foodbanks—? And I commend the volunteers and the people who donate, I really do. But could you just explain to me and my constituents why those crisis moments have exponentially exploded since 2010?

Well—[Laughter.]

Just tell us. Just tell us why.

Well, I—

Population growth.

Population growth? [Members of the Senedd: 'Oh.'] Unbelievable. 

I'm trying to add to the debate. I'm adding to the debate, and—

Okay. Allow the Member to continue.

I can obviously see the Member's passion and the cases in his constituency, and I have exactly the same in mine. Rhyl is one of the most deprived areas in the country, in Wales and most of the UK, so I'm not going to take any lectures from Members from south Wales on issues in my constituency. So, the Member's very rich to be saying to me, 'Oh, well'—preaching about issues in Rhyl from Members in the Valleys. So—[Members of the Senedd: 'Oh.']

Foodbanks exist to help those in times of crisis, and I repeat they are not the enemy. Poverty is—poverty is the enemy—and, sadly, the Welsh Government, supported by Plaid on those benches, for the last two decades, have done nothing to tackle poverty in Wales. EU anti-poverty funds were squandered, cheap foreign labour was prioritised over creating high-paid jobs for those living in Wales, and if they spent less time on constitutional issues and pet projects and more and more transforming our economy, then maybe one in four of our citizens in Wales wouldn't be below the poverty line that they're in today. Thank you very much.

The Minister for Social Justice to contribute. Jane Hutt.

Diolch, Llywydd. I'd like to start by thanking Plaid Cymru for tabling this very important debate today, which, of course, is a motion we will support, as we do face a serious situation when charities like the Trussell Trust have warned that many low-income households will face very stark choices for themselves and their families this winter. And that's been very much reflected in this powerful debate.

I have to say that, when the UK Government announced its plan to remove the £20 uplift for universal credit, it was the Trussell Trust that provided research, surveying people who would be affected by that proposed cut, which then went ahead. One in four people said they would very likely need to skip meals if the cut to universal credit went ahead, and that cut did go ahead, despite strong representations made in this Chamber by this Welsh Labour Government, across the UK, cross-party Tory voices as well, and from those charities that work at the forefront of tackling child poverty. And demand for emergency food provision has increased significantly and continues to grow as vulnerable households experience the economic fallout from the pandemic—we recognise that across the Chamber—rising levels of debt, increases in the cost of living, all of which have had an adverse impact. But, in this powerful debate on tackling food poverty, we do need to consider the causes as well as the responsibilities for taking appropriate action. 

The key levers for reducing levels of poverty in Wales, powers over the tax and welfare system, sit with the UK Government. Nevertheless, there is much we can do as a Welsh Government to prevent poverty, reduce its impact and tackle the inequalities that arise from living in poverty. And our programme for government sets out our commitment to protect, rebuild and develop our services for vulnerable people and improve outcomes for low-income households. Our support for the social wage, through initiatives such as the childcare offer, our council tax reduction scheme, the provision of free school meals—and I'll go on to that—have had the effect of leaving more money in the pockets of Welsh citizens.

And I do join Luke Fletcher, who opened this debate so powerfully, and Members across the Chamber, on this side, in welcoming the co-operation agreement between the Labour Government and Plaid Cymru, with Jane Dodds's support for that commitment to extend free school meals to all primary school pupils over the lifetime of the agreement. And this is transformational action. It will ensure no child in primary school is left hungry. It will be key to tackling child poverty, reducing the inequalities of outcome linked to socioeconomic disadvantage. The provision of a healthy meal as part of the school day will help to encourage healthy eating habits and attitudes, and it's practical learning that will be reinforced by the new curriculum for Wales, the health and well-being area of learning and experience, helping learners understand the factors that affect physical health and well-being, including health-promoting behaviours, such as nutrition and a balanced diet.

During the summer, I met with those running the Wrexham holiday play scheme at Caia Park and visited, in Mike Hedges's constituency, the Faith in Families project at the family centre in Bonymaen. And what was important was speaking to the parents who were fully engaged in that project and had self-esteem and encouragement that they were able to support their families and look to opportunities for their own training, further education and employment. I was able to understand the vital work done in those communities, and many of you have highlighted them from projects you're supporting across this Chamber.

There's no doubt that the universal roll-out of free school meals to primary pupils will relieve some of those financial pressures being experienced by many of the families they support. But also, importantly, that free school meals commitment will enable us to use our levers to drive public procurement and to increase local food production—I'm sure Peter Fox will be encouraged by that—and distribution. It will, in turn, benefit local economies, ecologies and communities. And it will take place alongside the development of the community food strategy, with food as the common factor. It has the potential to improve the mental and physical health of Welsh citizens, and Delyth Jewell raised this important point. It can also bring about those benefits to society—economic, environmental, sustainable benefits to help regenerate our communities.

And we have, for the third year running, allocated £2 million to community food organisations to help tackle food poverty and address food insecurity. We've increased our funding to FareShare to £500,000 this year and, over the last decade, they've distributed the equivalent of 11 million meals to those in need, and currently provide quality surplus food to around 180 community organisations and charities in Wales, and many of those are very positive in the way that they are engaging with their communities to provide accessible food. I'm very pleased that Huw Irranca-Davies mentioned Big Bocs Bwyd, which actually has made an award-winning start in Barry primary schools, rolling out the project to more than 20 schools in the Valleys regional park area. And of course, also understanding that FareShare food and imaginative engagement, which is what they use, provides affordable food to families, but it builds a wider appreciation of the connections between food, nature and the economy. But also, as part of the £51 million household support fund last month, £1.1 million will go to tackle food poverty, helping those food banks that you all support across Wales with those immediate pressures that they're facing.

We know that having insufficient money is the root cause of food poverty, so this is important if we link it to the national benefits take-up campaign, raising people's awareness of the financial support they're entitled to, and encouraging them to phone Advicelink Cymru for free help and advice, maximising incomes, and our winter fuel support scheme will see £38 million go to support households in receipt of working-age, means-tested welfare benefits to meet the immediate pressures on living costs this winter. In fact, we discussed that last week in the debate on fuel poverty. And we have our discretionary assistance fund. These are all the levers, the ways in which the Welsh Government can both choose to prioritise the way we spend our resource. Our discretionary assistance fund is crucial in helping people in financial crisis to meet some of those financial challenges they face, including meeting the cost of food and fuel. And in March, we announced a further £10.5 million to continue the unprecedented support for those who need the discretionary assistance fund and need those flexibilities, which we are continuing as a result of the adverse impact of the pandemic.

We're also taking steps to increase the take-up of Healthy Start vouchers—and I am, in fact, meeting with Lynne Neagle, the Deputy Minister for Mental Health and Well-being—knowing that these can also provide young families on low incomes with £4.25 each week to buy milk, vitamins and foods that improve the nutritional intake of children. We're clear on our commitment to tackle poverty. It is a cross-cutting theme in our budget planning process. It will help ensure poverty is at the heart of policy and service delivery, but I have to say that this is a time today when we do have to look at who is responsible, what are the causes, and there have been damaging decisions made by the UK Government, such as cuts to welfare support and more than 11 years of austerity that have plunged more vulnerable households in Wales into poverty.

We will take our responsibility as a Welsh Government, and I hope the UK Government and the party, and the Welsh Conservatives, will take their responsibilities as well. We have the evidence: Trussell Trust, Children in Wales, the Bevan Foundation, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. If we play our part with our powers and resources, the UK Government must play their much bigger part. I welcome and support this motion and debate. Diolch.

Sioned Williams to reply to the debate.

Thank you, Llywydd, and I'd like to thank everyone who's contributed to this afternoon's debate and encourage you to support the motion. It's good to hear from the Minister that the Government will be supporting our motion, because the essence of this motion is that we should aim not only towards creating a more sustainable and fairer food system for our people, but that this should be established as a basic human right and incorporated into policies and activities of Government. After all, what could be more of a fundamental duty of Government to its people than to ensure a right not only to a sustainable food supply which is nutritious and adequate, but also the right to health, and there is nothing more fundamental to health than an adequate supply of healthy food. We heard from Luke Fletcher about the importance of ensuring that the right to food should be an integral part of the education system and that poverty and food poverty impacts children particularly. Heledd Fychan mentioned how the Welsh Government could do more to tackle food waste through, for example, including conditions in economic contracts. And we were reminded very powerfully by Delyth Jewell that this is a very timely debate. It is a time of crisis, as we've heard from many Members here this afternoon, and going without food affects you not only physically, but mentally and spiritually.

Heledd Fychan and Mike Hedges mentioned the use of foodbanks, and Mike Hedges mentioned that this was happening in areas that are considered to be relatively prosperous now. There were some heartbreaking examples of people going without essential food. I was extremely concerned to hear Gareth Davies missing the point of this debate entirely in his contribution by saying that he wants to see foodbanks, and therefore the poverty and the need that makes foodbanks a necessity, continue. He said,

'In an ideal world', we wouldn't need foodbanks. It's a lack of political will that we don't live in an ideal world.

Jane Dodds mentioned those areas that are food deserts, where it is impossible to access nutritious, affordable food. This is important, and things like public transport policy do contribute to this picture and the problems faced by these communities. I was very pleased—. Sorry, Mike.

You said 'an ideal world'. Some of us know it as the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.

Not always for women, but there we are.

Peter Fox spoke very powerfully on this need for local food plans, and I welcome that idea very warmly. Peredur Owen Griffiths and Jenny Rathbone highlighted this problem of people not being able to afford the fuel to cook their food, and the importance of changing our relationship with food. It's difficult to believe, isn't it, that, with the UK being one of the most wealthy nations in the world, many people have difficulty in affording food, and their health suffers as a result of that.

I'm the granddaughter of a miner, and they were on strike in 1926, and I've heard the stories about the hardship and food shortages at that time from my grandmother. It's difficult to believe that, almost a century later—many people mentioned this—we are talking about a level of need that requires that community collaboration that kept the families of workers from starvation in the 1920s and 1930s.

I volunteer with my local foodbank, The Pantry, in Pontardawe, and the way the community comes together to try and ensure that people have enough to eat is inspiring. We're not criticising foodbanks in any way whatsoever, but in reality their existence in this day and age is repulsive.

Our motion talks about the right to food, and Huw Irranca-Davies spoke powerfully about this, and the importance of the fact that it is a right and how governments and political leaders have failed in their duty to support that right. Since devolution, Wales has often taken pride in the bold steps that it has taken in terms of rights, such as children's rights, which we heard mentioned in this Chamber yesterday. One of the United Nations' global sustainable development goals is to eradicate famine by 2030, an aim that is acknowledged by this Government in its supplementary report to the UK's voluntary national review of progress towards the sustainable development goals and the statement that we in Wales are doing things differently is lauded in that report. The foreword, in the name of Mark Drakeford and Jane Hutt, notes that the UN's sustainable development goals set out an ambitious agenda for transforming the world for people, the planet and prosperity.

'We share this ambition in Wales and we are committed to making our contribution to the goals', states our First Minister and our Minister for Social Justice and equalities. Bearing in mind that commitment, the Welsh Government needs to ensure that the right to food is an integral part of policies across Government that tackle poverty and economic deprivation.

I want to remind you once again why this is so crucial, by repeating what we note in our motion, namely that a quarter of the people of Wales are living in poverty and the use of foodbanks is increasing, and food insecurity is having a detrimental impact on the health and well-being of our people. And yes, food insecurity is a matter of public health protection. We've heard from Peredur Owen Griffiths how this can have a detrimental impact on the health of older people, and that those who experience food insecurity are more likely to keep food for longer and eat food where it's gone beyond the date where it's safe to eat. This, along with going without food or eating an unbalanced diet, can, of course, emerge from poverty and puts people at risk of malnutrition, food poisoning and ill health. How many times over the past few months have we heard references in this Chamber to the perfect storm of diminishing income and increasing living costs, to the tsunami of need that is gradually emerging and is about to hit too many of our households? The link between food prices increasing as people's income declines is clear for all to see, and the way in which food is part of this worrying equation is central to our debate this afternoon. It is known that nutrition in diet reduces as these factors emerge, and as that happens, the likelihood of ill health increases, as well as the negative impact on existing medical conditions, as Peredur mentioned.

In conclusion, therefore, I urge you to support our demands on the UK Government and the Welsh Government to commit to deliver their most fundamental duty: to feed their people and to put tackling poverty at the top of every agenda. One can't deny that there is something very wrong with our society. We must ensure that there is no barrier to people enjoying the most fundamental of their human rights—the right to food. Thank you.

The proposal is to agree the motion without amendment. Does any Member object? [Objection.] I will therefore defer voting on the motion until voting time. 

Voting deferred until voting time.

We now reach voting time, and we'll take a short break to prepare for the vote.

Plenary was suspended at 18:12.

The Senedd reconvened at 18:16, with the Llywydd in the Chair.