A councillor has slammed the leader of the Isle of Wight Council for using the word ‘pleased’ when referring to the number of food vouchers distributed on the Island.
In the leader’s report, which went to full council last night (Wednesday), one item said ‘members will be pleased to know that over 4,500 food vouchers have been issued to support vulnerable children’ during the December and February school holiday.
Questioning whether council leader Dave Stewart actually wrote the report, Councillor Lora Peacey-Wilcox said she could not be the only councillor who felt offended by the use of the word ‘pleased’. She said:
“It shows a total lack of respect to [those children]. Indeed, it speaks volumes of the Conservative government that we are in this situation.”
Cllr Peacey-Wilcox said Cllr Stewart should ‘hold his head in shame’ and asked the word to be changed to ‘given’ or ‘issued’.
Saying he did not ‘physically write the report in pen’, Cllr Stewart said he did endorse and approve the report but it was a team effort, ‘supported’ by council officers and cabinet members who provide detail from their respective areas.
Cllr Stewart went on to say he did think members would be pleased to know, “‘know’ being the key point”, that that number of food vouchers had been handed out to vulnerable children through the connect4communities scheme and that 160 care leavers have also received food vouchers for financial support. He said:
“I think when we are having young Islanders in difficulties it is right and proper that we should support them — I thought all members would be pleased to know that we are doing so.”
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The connect4communities scheme was introduced in December last year to help provide grants for community groups to support local families who are facing hardships due to the COVID-19 pandemic, either providing food and other essential items or helping with bills.
Lets hope that benefits were adjusted to the value of these vouchers. Otherwise unfair on those who do manage without. Seems some can have their cake and eat it.
Oh dear. What a shameful thing to say, wouldn’t want to be you when you sober up in the morning
councillor Lora Peacey-Wilcox said she could not be the only councillor who felt offended.
jeez – nothing like virtue signalling – pah offended, yeah right, she is just point scoring in the hope that she hits a bullseye on public opinion.
the fact is, those of us who pay our taxes are seeing it spent on the food vouchers for feckless layabouts kids, who already get benefits packages and charity handouts. Meanwhile, the feckless parents are getting more booze, baccy and weed in for the weekend, with the money they haven’t spent on food.
More people than ever before needing to use food banks to survive and eat, yet the council see fit to squeeze every last penny out of us all through steep tax rises and spending on stupid crap like £300k speed cameras.
I expect that they are pleased about this as if people get a charity helping hand then there’s more money to rinse out of them in council tax.
And the 4500 will have cost less than his weeks wages the the tax payers pay him. He should be totally ashamed of him self and the people he works with.
Less than his weeks wages? I definitely want his job if he is earning £234,000 a year
Why aren’t these people pleased???
I don’t get it, surely it’s good news? Personally I’m tired of these far left idiots trying to pervert what’s a good policy for their own political gains
Like it or not, this is good news!!…
I can see what Cllr Peacey-Wilcox means by it’s not a pleasing situation that 4,500 children are in need of vouchers to simply eat, it isnt a great situation but what should be more shameful are the idiots commenting on here begrudging children basic meals because of there family situation.
I’ve said it many times before you cannot and should not persecute the children for the parents reckless behaviour with their finances, and also not all the parents are useless it could just be unfortunate circumstances that have lead to the family requiring food vouchers.