THE Border’s biggest charity food provider expects to have less rice and pasta to distribute to the needy because of government funding cuts.
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Albury Wodonga Regional FoodShare chairman Greg Hardham says reduced federal funding for supplier Foodbank will hurt his organisation which caters to battlers across the North East and southern Riverina.
“It will have an effect because although we don’t receive funding from Foodbank Victoria we do receive key staples, things like pasta, rice and cereal, which we don’t rescue from local supermarkets,” Mr Hardham said.
“They are the long shelf life things that we need to distribute to agencies.”
Mr Hardham said another source would need to be found to meet the expected shortfall in the weekly staples delivery from Melbourne .
“Six weeks before Christmas is an incredibly bad time,” he said.
“It means we have to fight on yet another front, so I’d call on the federal government to urgently reconsider that decision.”
Prime Minister Scott Morrison told Channel 10 that overall funding for food relief had not been cut, but spread over more organisations.
“Now what that means is we had a competitive process to tender on who could best deliver these services and instead of doing one organisation there are now three – so the services are being delivered and that's what's important,” Mr Morrison said.
“But I'll have a chat to the Social Services Minister and, if there's any need to review that decision, then - it was a decision obviously made by the department - and we'll take a look at that.”
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten visited a Foodbank warehouse in Melbourne on Monday and called on the funding to be reinstated.
"When you can find $444 million for a Great Barrier Reef Foundation that didn't even ask for the money; you're prepared to give $17 million to big banks,” Mr Shorten said.
“Why not give $323,000 to the Foodbank?”