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Friday, 19 February 2021_The onslaught of the pandemic and the ensuing national lock-downs has lifted the lid off an ugly truth about the UK: 14 million Britons, a third of them children, now live below the breadline: a poverty crisis that is tarnishing the image of one of the most powerful economies on the planet.
This winter has seen food bank queues snaking around corners in the UK. Those down on their luck waiting up to five hours in the freezing cold, not knowing if there will be anything left for them. In places where poverty and hunger were already rife – it’s the tip of the iceberg.
Jaywick, a seaside village in southeast England, is named the country’s most deprived area for the past decade. Over the years local authorities have been grilled over worsening conditions here, to no avail.
Residents resent their Jaywick’s shanty town status and are wary of outsiders. Reporters have tried to get interviews by offering them alcohol -- drug and alcohol abuse are already a problem here. The government has given the local council millions of pounds to build a marketplace and affordable housing… But the locals say they’re yet to feel the benefit of that.
These cottages used to be temporary holiday accommodation but have served as permanent homes for decades now. They are run down and have little or no heating -- there is no pressure on property owners to fix that.
Supermarkets say they can’t deliver to Jaywick. People are relying on community spirit to get them through. Half the children here live in poverty. Unemployment is high. For every five people, there’s only one job.
The British government stands accused of leaving it to charities to feed the country’s hungry, millions of them children. NGOs say this is a comedown for the fifth largest economy in the world, and food bank queues growing has only highlighted an already existing crisis.
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