Failure to pass Right to Food Bill to the next stage sees Greens and SNP accused of not being 'interested in tackling food poverty'
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The SNP and Green coalition has been accused of sending a message to the public that they do not care about food poverty after kicking a Right to Food Bill “into the long grass.”
Highlands and Islands Labour MSP Rhoda Grant took over sponsorship of the Bill from former MSP Elaine C Smith but the Scottish Parliament’s Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee knocked it back on a technicality.
Convener Joe Fitzpatrick cast the deciding vote after the Conservatives and Labour members backed the Bill.
A second consultation will now have to be carried out for what could prove to be landmark legislation.
If passed the Bill would enshrine a right to food in Scots law, placing responsibility for realising this right on the Scottish Government.
After the meeting, Mrs Grant said she would forge ahead and carry out further consultation with outside organisations though she believed the first consultation had been more than adequate.
“It is deeply disappointing that the SNP and Greens have sought to delay the Right to Food Bill at committee this morning,” she said just after the decision. “The pandemic has made the Right to Food Bill even more urgent.
“To delay on this vital matter sends a message to the public that this government is not interested in tackling food poverty. There is no time for dither and delay. The SNP and Greens need to drop their partisan opposition to this vital Bill and put the needs of the people of Scotland above petty politics.
“Access to food is a human right, but it is being denied to too many people in our country. The pandemic has only exacerbated this and increased the need for action.
“The government has suggested that a wider Human Rights Bill could include the right to food, but have not confirmed whether they would have an independent body ensuring the right under this act would be met. I want to move this forward now.”
