The Conversation (0)
Greg Evans
Oct 26, 2020
The debate over free school meals for hungry children is currently dominating the landscape of British politics and is threatening to be the most divisive subject since Brexit.
Well, speaking of Brexit, the biggest supporters of leaving the European Union, the Brexit Party has left people stunned after it came out in support of the campaign which has been lead by the Labour party and footballer Marcus Rashford.
Last week, the Tory government voted overwhelmingly to not reintroduce the scheme during the October half-term break and Christmas holidays, thus depriving struggling families with meals for children that they are dependant upon. This decision caused such uproar that even Nigel Farage thought that it was 'mean and wrong' especially in comparison to the Eat Out to Help Out scheme during the summer.
Farage's own party has now followed suit with a similar comparison and asked their followers if the government's decision is 'fair.'
The Brexit Party decision to back the scheme would appear admirable and in line with many who were outraged by the Tories decision to not give the free meals to struggling families. However, many of the replies to the tweet, which appear to have come from Brexiteers, show that they aren't too impressed with this new direction for the party.
Critics of the Brexit Party believe that they might have misread their audience and the irony that they helped the Tories get into power, or are just in complete shock that perhaps one of the most unpopular political parties in the UK has actually said something decent.
Whether the backing of the campaign by the Brexit Party will force the government into another embarrassing U-turn remains to be seen but at this stage feels unlikely.
In the wake of the government's decision, there has been a huge outpouring of support from businesses, such as McDonald's and local councils have declared that they will be offering hungry children free meals during the current holidays.