A local authority is due to take on the issue of food poverty in Medway.

A number of proposals are to be explored by the Medway Council to help impoverished families.

One of those is the introduction of a fuel bank.

Medway Foodbank, based on the Medway City Estate, has seen the number of people relying on its handouts increase by 39% between January to December 2018 and January to December 2019.

Councillors agreed at a meeting to set up a Medway Food Partnership, which will bring together council departments, schools, public health organisations, the private sector and charities.

The partnership will draw up an action plan on how the issue can be addressed.

Cllr David Brake (Con), portfolio holder for adults' services, said: "Food poverty is caused by many issues and requires a number of partners to work together to create a system-wide response."

Deputy leader Cllr Howard Doe wanted to state what the role of the council would be, saying: "We have to be very clear on what the council's role is in this matter.

"We are a public health authority and therefore we are in a position where we have the expertise in-house to advise on, for example, food choices and this sort of thing. We have the resources to identify from the research we do elsewhere where things have gone wrong.

"What I am very concerned about, and is something I want to emphasise, is the fact the council is not in a position to start a large-scale investment in food subsidies because it can't do it.

"Frankly, we've had enough trouble balancing the budget as it is.

He went on to attribute Universal Credit as one of the main reasons for the rising issue of food poverty.

Cllr Rodney Chambers (Con), portfolio holder for inward investment, strategic regeneration and partnerships, said: "I don't like this word 'food poverty'.

"I'm not sure if it means that we are back to the period during the war when food was scarce.

"But, of course, what is commonly known is that people were far healthier on a balanced diet which was directed from national government than they are today."

During the meeting, councillors also set out plans on how the council intends to curb the rates of childhood obesity.

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