Caller Denies Poverty Exists In Britain And People Aren’t Happy

When Peter in Eastbourne told Shelagh Fogarty food bank users in Britain were a “myth” and poverty in this country did not exist his remarks were bound to spark a huge reaction.

The LBC caller got in touch because he was fed up with the Labour Party “continuously perpetuating lies about poverty”.



Justifying his controversial point of view, he alluded to recent programmes about benefits he had watched on TV.



“These Briton’s on the breadline look well off to me,” Peter said.



“They’re well fed, they had computers, flatscreen TVs and mobile phones that cost about £500.



“I think this food bank lark is a myth and they’re plenty of jobs out there. I’m 73, I could go out of my house this morning and I can come back tonight with a job.”

Across the UK there are more than 2,000 food banks, according to the Independent Food Aid Network.

The Trussell Trust, Britain’s biggest food bank provider, revealed in April that the number of people accessing their service had increased by 7 per cent in the last year.

But, explaining his view of what poverty really is, Peter continued: “Poverty to me is some starving person in Africa or India eating leaves off the floor while their country is firing off missiles to the moon - that’s poverty.



“This country is the fifth richest in the world, and anybody who tells me there is poverty in this country are perpetuating lies.”



The controversial comments instantly caused a stir on social media, as other LBC listeners took a completely different view on the matter.





Peter from Eastbourne's argument, essentially that he doesn't reckon the poor are poor enough. What a lovely, thoughtful chap. @LBC — Alex McNamara (@Alex_McNamara) May 30, 2017

@LBC Peter from Eastbourne is living in an south coast retirement home bubble! There is poverty in the UK. — Jute (@1jute) May 30, 2017