Users of a food bank cooking school were given gifts for “behaving for the newspapers” to spare Tory Lee Anderson’s blushes after his embarrassing rant about food poverty, the Sunday Mirror has been told.
Ashfield MP Lee Anderson was branded “disgraceful” and “crass” last month after he appeared to blame food poverty on a lack of cooking and budgeting skills.
He claimed there is not a “massive use for food banks” in the UK, adding there was “generation after generation who cannot cook properly” and “cannot budget”.
And he challenged politicians and the media to “come to Ashfield to visit the food bank I work with. They give food parcels away on the condition they enroll for cooking and budgeting lessons.”
But locals said they felt uncomfortable when they arrived for their weekly lesson to find members of the media there to observe the class - without being warned in advance.
And following the class, they were given cards thanking them for “all you did last week in relation to the media interest in our food bank.”
Along with the card, locals were given £20 worth of high street vouchers, which can be used at Iceland, M&S, Boots and other stores.
Residents reported feeling under pressure to give positive comments to the media and about Mr Anderson in the wake of the row.
One person who attended the class told the Sunday Mirror they were “uncomfortable” with the media being present, and told organisers they did not want to be involved.
They said they were not a food bank user and only signed up for the course to learn cooking skills, without realising the school was connected to a food bank.
“I didn’t want anything to do with it, I don’t do politics.” they said.
They said it felt like the vouchers were being given out in return for “behaving for the newspapers.”
The vouchers were given to at least ten students.
One resident said they were confused about who had paid for the vouchers, adding “this would be better going to the foodbank who rely on donations and volunteers.”
Mr Anderson said: "Another nonsense story by the out of touch Mirror who did not attend the event.
"All service users are given cards and a pat on the back for attending lessons.
"I invited the media with the permission of the food bank and college."
He added that he would be returning to the food bank next week for another cooking event.
A spokesperson for the college said: “We are very proud of our excellent college provision, which is deservedly rated Good by Ofsted.
"The college serves a large number of students on low-income backgrounds and - as with many other colleges with a similar student intake - we are keen to help them cook and eat as responsibly and healthily as possible which is good for them and for society more widely.
"It is nonsense to suggest that any student has ever been pressured into, or paid for, attending classes.”
The lessons and food bank are run by Let’s All Eat, a project to enable vulnerable people to access affordable and healthy food, operating within Sutton Community Academy.
Let’s All Eat was given a £11,110 grant by the local council in October, to pay for food, volunteer training and venue hire.
Mr Anderson gave £1,000 to the food bank in January, and met with Liz Barrett - the principal of the college, who helps run the food bank.
Ms Barrett was given an OBE in the 2022 New Year’s Honours list for services for education.
