Dignity will be at the heart of a new cost of living task force launched by Midlothian Council to support people in crisis.
Councillors approved the setting up of the new team to work with local groups to find ways to help people cope with the rising prices and provide practical support.
And they said dignity and respect would be central to its work with aims to find ways to help people without the need to visit foodbanks.
Council leader Kelly Parry led a motion to set up the new task force at a Midlothian council meeting yesterday. (TUES)
She said: “The current cost of living crisis, inflationary pressures and households struggling is sadly a theme of the day
“It is incumbent on all of us to make sure we do whatever we can to help no matter what level of government and while we have had some funding from UK and Scottish Government sources which is welcomed they don’t go far enough.”
Councillor Parry acknowledged the ‘huge amount of work’ carried out by council workers and third sector charities and groups to help with the crisis but said they had their own challenges and barriers.
She said “Declining donations to foodbanks are a trend at the moment but we do have rising demand and we have charities and organisations that are struggling with rising energy costs.
“This task force would give the crisis the same focus we give to other committees and is the right thing to do.
“It gives us the governance that it needs to get on with the job, for example, making recommendations to council.”
Councillor Derek Milligan seconded the motion saying “It is deadly important here that the word dignity in the cost of living crisis is kept all the time.
“Whilst food banks are a necessary evil in this day and age and the quicker they are not needed the better, asking people to trot down to a foodbank to bring messages home to their family just really isn’t the way so I would hope the task force, which we wholeheartedly agree with, finds a way to keep dignity at the heart of it.”
And councillor Ellen Scott added: “The council has been doing a good job during the winter months using trusted partners so that people didn’t get foodbank parcels, they received fuel money and food vouchers or money they could use.
“We found that was really well received and people could use this money as they saw fit.
“For most of them it was for fuel but there were other emergencies as well like children being in hospital and other things.”
“It helped in lots of different ways so I think having such a strategy is going to be really important over the winter months for our communities.”
Councillors unanimously agreed to set up the task force with elected members Kelly Parry, Ellen Scott, Bryan Pottinger, Willie McEwan and David Virgo named as members.
Councillor Virgo said: “I look forward to working collegiately for the benefit of everyone who needs help.”
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