New Year Message

Written by Jenny Tonge MP and published in Online Exclusive on Fri 31st Dec 2004

The re-making of the pop disc "Feed the World" has brought back memories, not just of people all over the world living in poverty, but of going to Midnight Mass with (for once) my teenage children, who had been inspired by Bob Geldof's original release, way back in the 80's when famine was raging in Ethiopia.

We may give generously to starving millions at Christmas, but poverty and hunger is not just at this time of year, but all year through, every year.

What if, instead of ten or twenty pounds in the box at Christmas we were asked to pay more for our food, use the car less to prevent global warming or send our nurses and teachers to poor countries, instead of theirs coming to us? What if? Would we then be quite so keen on feeding the world?

We must do all of these things if we are to make a difference to the two-thirds of the world who live in poverty.

It's not just the right thing to do it's in our own interests. Globalisation means that people living on less than a dollar a day know about our luxurious lifestyles and wonder why they cannot have a share. Remember poverty leads to civil war and support for terrorist groups and we are fighting a war against terrorism.

Give generously all year round. Happy 2005.