Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 9 January 2017 to Question 58293, what steps his Department is taking to end food poverty and reliance on food banks.

It is widely acknowledged that the reasons why people use food banks are complex and overlapping. It is misleading to link them to any particular cause.

The Government’s approach has been about recognising the value and importance of work, to make work pay and to support people into work whilst protecting the most vulnerable in society.

We are committed to ensuring that those in work are paid a fair wage; have opportunities to progress and achieve their potential. We are getting people into employment and working to change attitudes, introducing reforms to make sure that work always pays.