Gower AM praises work of local foodbanks - but says "we shouldn’t need them"

The anti-poverty charity, the Trussell Trust, has produced its annual foodbank statistics for Wales.

They show that across Wales, 98,350 three day emergency food supplies were provided by the Trussell Trust Foodbank for people facing crisis, 35,403 of whom were children.

In Gower alone, 7,017 three day emergency food supplies were provided over the last year - 2,515 of which were for children.

Rebecca Evans AM, Assembly Member for Gower, said: “The Trussell Trust statistics are a stark reminder of how many people in Gower and across Wales are in need of foodbanks - and they reveal that the number is continuing to grow. These facts are a shocking indictment of the UK Government’s austerity agenda.”

For the first time, new Wales-specific data highlights the growing proportion of foodbank referrals which are due to benefit levels not covering the cost of essentials.  

The other main primary referral reasons were benefit delays and benefit changes. 

Mr Evans added: "Once again, it's the people who have the least who are being hit the hardest.
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“There should be no need for anyone to have to rely on foodbanks, but in these difficult times I am very grateful that they are there to help. I wholeheartedly thank the many volunteers who, week in week out, give of their time and resources to meet the needs of our communities."