Marcus Rashford Launches Commons Petition For Free School Meals Over October Half-Term And Christmas

England footballer Marcus Rashford has launched a parliamentary petition calling on Boris Johnson to expand free school meal vouchers for millions of poor children in England over the October half-term and Christmas.

Supported by 20 charities and key figures in the food industry, the Manchester United striker also called for the provision of free meals to all households on Universal Credit, plus the extension of food vouchers to all low income pregnant women and pre-school youngsters.

The footballer, who was awarded an MBE last week for his role in helping deprived children, stepped up the pressure on the prime minister as new data released by the Food Foundation revealed that 1.4 million 8-17 year olds visited foodbanks over the summer holidays.

Meanwhile, the Welsh Government announced on Thursday that it has guaranteed free school meal provision for all school holidays up to and including Easter 2021, thanks to an extra £11m in funding.

Following a viral campaign in July, Rashford forced the government into a dramatic U-turn to extend free school meal vouchers to cover the summer, but now says that a wider strategy is needed.

His new petition, which campaigners hope will force MPs to debate the issue if it passes the 100,000 mark, calls for the expansion of free school meals to every child from a household on Universal Credit or equivalent, reaching an additional 1.5million under-17s.

It further calls for the expansion of holiday food to support all children on free school meals, reaching an additional 1.1million children, as well as an increase in the value of the Healthy Start vouchers to £4.25 per week and given to all on Universal Credit.

Rashford, who praised the Welsh government, said:...

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