Jacob Rees-Mogg has described the increased prevalence of food banks as a “rather uplifting” show of charity, arguing the only reason for the rise in their use is that the former Labour government did not tell people they existed. “I think there is good within food banks and the real reason for the rise in numbers is that people know that they’re there, and Labour deliberately wouldn’t tell them,” the Conservative backbencher told LBC radio. Challenged by a caller about the increased use of food banks – the Trussell Trust, Britain’s biggest food bank network, said it handed out record amounts of supplies last year, in part due to increased benefit delays – Rees-Mogg argued they fulfilled a vital function. “Food banks pre-date the Conservative government and crucially, the change that took place was that the Conservative government allowed Jobcentre Plus to tell people that food banks existed,” he said. “This kind of comment shows Jacob Rees-Mogg really is the dictionary definition of an out-of-touch Tory.”During the phone-in, Rees-Mogg also insisted he had no leadership ambitions.

Source: The Guardian September 14, 2017 10:22 UTC