Opposition leader, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, said government must take steps in the upcoming budget to lower food prices.
In a statement on her Facebook page, Persad-Bissessar said the reality facing our nation is that thousands of citizens are at this moment facing hardship, knowing they won’t be able to put a meal on the table for their families.
She said there are parents throughout our nation who are at this very moment deeply pained because they do not have the resources to provide a proper breakfast for their children.
“Extreme poverty has been increasing in the last months not only due to the prevailing pandemic but because of the economic hardship, joblessness, and increasing cost of food that have plagued our nation in the last five years,” Persad-Bissessar said.
She stated “We cannot allow some of our citizens to go hungry. We cannot allow children to be unable to enjoy the necessity of a warm meal.”
She added that “The Government I led fought hard to ensure every table had a meal and every family had nourishment due to projects such as our removal of VAT on over 7000 food items and the introduction of the baby grant
The UNC Leader said that with just one week to go before the budget, “I call on the Government to enact measures to reduce the cost of food.
I call on the Government, in a year when many have been financially weakened, to even consider the removal of VAT on a wider variety of food items so we can ensure that our citizens do not go hungry.”
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