John Davies - Notes From a Small Vicar

End Hunger Fast

Another 'support good causes' blog... This is one which challenges me, having championed Foodbanks in the past. Now they've become so ubiquitous their existence begs many questions of our governemnt, our society. So good on the Endhungerfast campaign, who are telling it straight: 'No one should go hungry in Britain', but half a million people used food banks in the last year.

They go on to say that 'Charitable support programmes are rapidly expanding but nonetheless a quarter of families are shrinking portion sizes and 5,500 people were admitted to hospital for malnutrition last year. More and more people are just one unexpected bill away from facing bare cupboards. This is a national and moral crisis and government must act to protect the half a million going hungry in Britain.'

It looks like it's time to join the fast, to share in the campaign's call on the government to ensure:

• That the welfare system provides a robust last line of defence against hunger in Britain

• That work pays enough for working people to properly provide for their families

• That food markets function, promoting long term sustainable and healthy diets with no one profiteering off hunger in Britain.

Doing something for submerged Swimmerset

These scenes of inundation are just a few short miles away from where we'll be living in a month or so, in an area which a local person yesterday described to me in an email as 'submerged Swimmerset'. Recognising that the floods are no laughing matter for those in the middle of these 170,000 acres (15 per cent of the county of Somerset) and seeing how extremely slowly the cogs of government are running, The Royal Bath and West of England Society has taken on the challenge of aiming to raise £3 million to dredge the rivers in the area. They say:

The various agencies involved in managing the Levels have now agreed that dredging the rivers is the right solution to this problem, something which has not happened for at least 10 years. Farms and businesses have suffered extreme hardship with many having to close. The Society sees its role as bringing together the responsible parties (including farmers, the Environment Agency, Internal Drainage Boards, Somerset County Council, the NFU and conservation bodies) to ensure that this work is done and the levels are saved.

They're asking for donations: we can help them out here.