Free school meals 'would tackle child poverty'

A Labour MP has said he wants to see the government introduce free school meals as a means to tackle child poverty, once the economy improves.

The policy was ruled out by Prime Minister Keir Starmer before the announcement of last year's general election.

But Sam Rushworth, MP for Bishop Auckland, said despite the idea not being government policy his ambition to see universal free school meals "hasn't changed".

North Tyneside Conservative councillor Lewis Bartoli objected to the possible scheme and said meals for well-off families should not be subsidised.

Amelia Lake, professor of public health nutrition at Teesside University, said the move was not about fighting poverty but improving the health of the next generation.

She said free meals could save the health service money in the long run by teaching children to live a healthy lifestyle.

"The reality is there are hungry children and quite unhealthy children who go on to be unhealthy adults which costs our NHS a lot of money," she said.

But Bartoli argued free school meals where already being supplied to those who need them the most.

"I accept there's probably a cohort – the squeezed middle – who are struggling," he said.

"But I think that to be giving free school meals to children of parents on more than enough means would feel like a waste of government money that could be spent somewhere else."