Dear Ed
As you may know, I, along with Grimsby Chaplain Simon Cross and Scott Albrecht are nearly two weeks into our 40 day no-food fast.
Things are going well and the hunger pains haven't been too bad so far. I am conserving my energy - although I find it hard to stay still for long!
I wanted to give you an update on the campaign.
Next Week, on Wednesday, the Chancellor George Osborne announces the Budget in parliament - and sets spending priorities for the nation in 2014. We need action on food poverty fast.
That's why today I hope you can do one thing for the campaign. Please sign the petition from Jack Monroe and forward on her email below to friends and family.
Jack is asking George Osborne to recognise the national crisis we face - and announce an 'End UK Hunger' Budget.
Unlike me, Jack has had to experience hunger not out of choice - but necessity. Her blog post 'Hunger Hurts' exposed the day to day experiences of thousands of mothers in Britain unable to feed their family.
So please join us. Stand with Jack and help us gather as many signatures as possible before we hand the petition in on Tuesday.
With love,
Keith Hebden
P.S:- Save the date. We will be announcing more details about picnic and vigil in central London during Holy Week to mark the end of the fasting period. I'll be in touch next week. From: Jack Monroe Sent: 12 March 2014 14.30 To: Keith Hebden Subject: Keith - can you help? Keith --
In December, over 140,000 of you signed my petition for Parliament to debate the stratospheric rise in foodbanks. Within days, we got that debate. Now, I need your help again. There is less than a month to the 2014 Budget on March 19. The Government has hinted at further deep cuts to the welfare state, and so far has offered no answers to the crisis of low wages and high food prices that are driving people to foodbanks. So, today, I'm launching a new petition calling for a different kind of Budget -- an End UK Hunger budget. This is a budget that repairs the safety net we may all need at some time in our lives. One that tackles high food prices and sets a living wage so that parents no longer have to work long hours and still can't feed their children. Click here to sign my petition. I believe this and every budget should have a hunger test. The Chancellor should acknowledge the exponential rise in foodbanks and UK hunger and he should ask will the budget drive more families to foodbanks – or will it tackle the scandal of UK hunger? I know what it is to feel hungry and to see your child go hungry. As I write this, tens of thousands of kids in Britain are going hungry. Parents are looking at empty cupboards in despair, and wondering how to keep on skipping meals without their children noticing. Teenagers are turning up to school, weak and exhausted, and too hungry to learn.
Today, things are different for me, but I'm hungry for change. If you are too, please sign my petition. Thank you, Jack Monroe @msjackmonroe |
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