There is frustration among backbench MPs that multi-billion pound funding announcements have been overshadowed by England striker Marcus Rashford’s push for free meals. Lee Anderson, the Conservative MP for the former Labour seat of Ashfield, said the Government’s cash injection was much more generous than the support demanded by the footballer. Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, a supporter of Mr Rashford’s campaign, claims it would cost around £20million a week to give free meals at half-term and Christmas to the poorest 1.5million.
The Government points to its provision of £63million to councils for families who are confronted with financial challenges, and a £9.3billion boost to welfare support.
On Thursday, local government secretary Robert Jenrick laid out details of a £900 million boost for councils’ response to the pandemic and a £100 million scheme to support local authority leisure centres.
Mr Anderson does not want the Government to be pressured into a u-turn on school meals.
He said: “I hope they stick to the policy. We gave councils £1billion…
“That is surely much better than spending £20million on free school meals. Each individual council now can see where their poorer families are and help them.
“That’s the best thing to do. [It’s] more money, we can help more families and keep children out of food poverty.
“It’s a no-brainer.”
However, pressure is mounting on the Government to back Mr Rashford’s proposals. Earlier this year, under pressure from Mr Rashford and his supporters, it u-turned so 1.3million English could have free school meal vouchers throughout the summer break.
Yesterday, around 700,000 people had signed a petition in support, and there is speculation a change of policy is once again on the cards.
Conservative MPs voted down a Labour attempt to make free meals a reality on Wednesday and were hit with a social media backlash.
Mr Anderson said: “Some [MPs] have had some real vile abuse online. I think the Labour party again have just taken advantage of the situation.”
Ben Bradley, the MP for neighbouring Mansfield, was condemned by Labour frontbenchers after arguing that extending free school meals was not the right way to help children who lived locally in a crack den or a brothel. Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner condemned him for “stigmatisation of working-class families” which she said was “disgraceful and disgusting”.
Speaking to the Sunday Express, Mr Bradley pushed for the Government to be clearer about what it is doing to help the worst off, saying: “It’s not fair to suggest Government isn’t doing anything. That’s been the Labour attack.
“What we need to be is much more bold and proactive in putting out the message about what we are doing, which amounts to billions and billions of pounds of support for vulnerable families over the course of the pandemic.”
He said local government had been given cash to identify children who need the most support and provide help that “goes far beyond meals and that’s the long-term answer to helping raise them out of that poverty”.
When asked if he regretted speaking out, he said: “It’s not easy, is it, but it’s the right thing and although it’s a difficult case to make and I wish Government were more proactively and loudly making it themselves I’m here to say what I think at the end of the day and that’s what I’ll do.”
Other Conservatives expect the Government to change policy.
One senior backbencher described why some MPs were unwilling to raise their heads above the parapet on this issue, saying: “The whips were trying to persuade a lot of us to go out and defend the position with the broadcasters. But nobody wanted to do it because what is the point of getting beat up on television and then the government u-turns next week, which is what we all expect will happen.”
There is also support for free meals in Tory ranks.
Conservative Harlow MP Robert Halfon rebelled in the Commons vote and backed the proposals for free meals.
In an online article, he said: “[It] should be a no-brainer to any Conservative that having a long-term plan to combat child food insecurity should be a priority for the Prime Minister and the Department for Education.”
The Scottish Government is funding councils to provide free meals over Christmas, February and Easter holidays. The Welsh Government will fund meal provision until Easter 2021.
