Read about Ann Widdecombe dismissing people’s “given right” to cheap food, good news for bus riders, and some ideas to keep yourself happy in the cost of living crisis (maybe start with not following the advice of certain politicians…)

Good morning. Here’s a corker for you. Ann Widdecombe thinks people don’t have a right to low food prices. 

Appearing on the BBC’s Politics Live programme, Widdecombe was asked what she would say to consumers who could not afford to pay for basics such as the ingredients of a cheese sandwich. 

“Well then you don’t have the cheese sandwich,” the former Conservative MP and Brexit Party MEP replied. “None of it’s new. We’ve been through this before. The problem is we’ve been decades now without inflation, we’ve come to regard it as some kind of given right.”

Food is a fundamental human right, and the UK government is legally required by international law to make sure that people have access to adequate food. That means healthy food people can afford. 

Instead, people are increasingly relying on food banks to survive. More than 760,000 people turned to Trussell Trust food banks for the first time between April 2022 and March 2023. And the Independent Food Aid Network revealed this week that 89 per cent of contributing organisations saw increased need for their help from January to March 2023.

The reality is the number of people struggling to afford food and going without is far higher than food bank figures show, with so much stigma around it. A total of 9.3 million adults experienced food insecurity in January 2023, meaning they could not afford or access food. 

If you are struggling to afford food, there is help out there – we have a guide here.  

Here’s what else you need to know this week. 

Have you got a story I should know about? Drop me, Isabella McRae, an email at isabella.mcrae@bigissue.com or DM me on Twitter @IsabellaMcrae

Need to know basis

💬 Mental health matters. This is a reminder to take care of yourself in the cost of living crisis. It’s a worrying time, but there’s simple steps you can take to get the help you need and support your mental health. Here’s some advice from experts about how to cope with money worries and some more general tips on how to be kind to yourself. And if it’s work that’s got you down, here’s some advice on that from our employment reporter Evie. 

❗Who’s paying for it? This is a brilliantly put together article about the real costs of the economic crisis in Huck. It uses insights gleaned from original data and drills deeper into the biggest drop in living standards in decades to understand its impact on real people in real time.

✈️ Pack up your troubles. If you ignore the headline of this piece (because, obviously, there is a cost of living crisis), it’s interesting that holiday sales are booming even though the cost of travel is rising. Maybe with everything that is going on, Brits are keen to prioritise getting out of the country for sunnier lands abroad? 

🚌 Thank god for buses. Bus passengers in England will be able to keep travelling for £2 until the end of October after the government extended funding. The cap applies to more than 130 bus operators outside of London. It will rise to £2.50 in November for 12 months.

💰 The real benefit fraud. The Department for Work and Pensions has recently been bragging about its commitment to cracking down on benefit fraud – but Rachel Charlton-Dailey writes that the real problem is how disabled people are treated by the welfare system. 

💭 Get real, gang. “For those peddling the ridiculous notion that young people just need to stop complaining and start saving, my message is this: get real,” says Sadiq Khan. He’s right: young people have it tough. Just see the news that 620,000 more adults are living with their parents than a decade ago. Khan also renewed his calls for a rent freeze. 

🏠 Until the bitter end. A really powerful story from my colleague Greg here about one of just 30 residents left on the Aylesbury estate as the council plans to demolish it. She’s staging a one-woman protest against gentrification.

🤔 Are you interested? This time last week, the Bank of England decided to raise interest rates and got a fair bit of backlash from charities and experts who warned it could lead to widespread, unmanageable debt for vulnerable people.

That means mortgage rates will be driven up (and probably rent with it). 

This is a good explainer about what it means for you on the BBC’s website. So, is it time for action? Joe Cox from Debt Justice believes we need a debt write off to escape the cost of living crisis.

Like what you're reading? Let people know by going to our sign-up article and sharing it on your social networks! You can also sign up to my colleague Evie's newsletter 'Working on It' which is all about making work better. 

On a cheery note

There surely can’t be anything cheerier than Eurovision. And the lovely news is that it may well help Liverpool fight for a better future through the cost of living crisis and in the months and years ahead. I spoke to councillor Harry Doyle, who played a big role in landing Eurovision for the country. 

“The future looks very bright,” he said. “We are a city that loves the extraordinary. We are a friendly outward-facing city. We always punch above our weight. We strive to do our best and we will never ever shy away from a challenge. We absolutely do it to the best of our ability. We do a fantastic job. And that is what Eurovision is going to show.”

Saving those coins

Bargain hunting. This piece in The Guardian is packed with insiders’ tips on getting the best bargains at charity shops, with thrifting becoming more and more popular in the cost of living crisis. You may fancy heading to the Charity Super.Mkt in Reading to try out those tips before it closes this weekend. It will move to Manchester soon after. And you might just be helping to stop fast fashion in its tracks: I wrote about the ins and outs of that here. 

Anyone doing something inspiring in your community or know about a cool initiative getting people through the cost of living crisis? Let me know at isabella.mcrae@bigissue.com

Dates for your diary 📅

May 21. The Sunday Times’ rich list is published. Who is raking in the millions this time?

May 24. Monthly inflation figures are out. 

May 26. Ofgem announces update to energy price cap, with one senior exec at the regulator saying it will “drop considerably” 

May 25. The risks to older people around abuse and the cost of living crisis. A webinar organised by charity Hourglass. 10am, online. 

May 25. Voluntary sector organisations’ response to the rise in cost of living. This is the Centre for Voluntary Sector Leadership (CVSL) Conference, and it looks to be a great set of speakers with lots of expert knowledge between them. 9.30am, online. 

June 7. Using human rights to strengthen your campaigning on the cost of living crisis.This is organised by Just Fair. 1pm, online.  

June 20. Financial support for living organ donors. If you have questions about reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses, this interactive webinar may be helpful. 5pm, online. 

June 28. The Economics of the ‘Cost of Living Crisis’. A discussion focused workshop on the economic, historic and political roots of the cost of living crisis from a working class perspective. 7pm, Granby Winter Garden, 37-39 Cairns Street, Liverpool, L8 2UW.

Anything I’ve missed or any events which should be on our radar? Let me know on isabella.mcrae@bigissue.com

Catch up 📺

Have you seen Queer Eye yet? If you haven’t, where have you been? It’s time for a binge. The latest season of the Netflix hit is back, and it is so heartwarming and so lovely and I couldn’t recommend it more for some escapism from the real world. The fab five turn people’s lives around and give them the chance to open up about their struggles and dreams, and they do it while promoting diversity and inclusivity. (And the heroes also get a makeover, what’s not to like?) Grab the tissues – you’ll need them. 

Sunny side up 🌞

She was just looking for a cheese sandwich.