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Irish Post CELEBRATING 45 YEARS AS THE VOICE OF THE IRISH IN BRITAIN IN 2015
THE
DECEMBER 12, 2015 £1.30 | Eurozone €1.95
For BREAKING NEWS visit www.irishpost.co.uk
JIMMY DUNNE The best
CHANGING ATTITUDES How my fight against racism TOY STORY The Late Late Show tradition brings the helped transform Ireland Pages 6-7
Irish soccer player you’ve probably never heard of
fun factor to Britain See Rí-Rá
Page 36
SISTER RITA TO THE RESCUE As the number of people living in poverty hits 13million in Britain, an inspirational Cork nun believes the Government must do more to help BY NEMESHA BALASUNDARAM AN IRISH nun is urging the Government to adopt new measures to help low-income families in Britain, for whom hunger remains a desperate concern. With 13million people living below the poverty line in Britain, and food banks being used to feed over a million people over the last year, of which 396,997 were children, there are continued pleas nationwide for emergency support. Sister Rita Lee, a Cork native, runs a drop-in centre and food bank for the most vulnerable people in one of Manchester’s poorest regions, Colly-
hurst, and has served the community there for over 50 years. Based at St Malachy’s Primary School in Eggington Street, the Lalley Centre, supported by Irish Community Care in Manchester, offers debt, welfare, and food poverty support to those in need. According to British hunger charity The Trussell Trust, there is often a significant rise in numbers of people needing food banks in winter, as people on low incomes face choices between eating and heating. Last December referrals to food banks were 53 per cent higher than the average across other months, with the charity providing 130,000 three-
Get the
day food supplies to people in crisis in just one month. Sister Rita has led the Lalley Centre since 2007, and it is this week the focus of a new five-part BBC series, Sister Rita to the Rescue, which will aim to highlight the plight of young families and those on low salaries who are affected by Government cuts and sanctions. Speaking to The Irish Post, she said: “I’m not a politician, but I know that more definitely needs to be done. I want social enterprise, either a supermarket or things built here to build jobs. It’ll lift them out of the poverty, creating businesses will also provide jobs for people.”
Continued on page 2
SOCIAL CALLING: Sister Rita Lee’s work in the community is the focus of a new BBC series
on Saturday for
ONLY 50p
See INSIDE for details
THE
DECEMBER 12, 2015 £1.30 | Eurozone €1.95
For BREAKING NEWS visit www.irishpost.co.uk
JIMMY DUNNE The best
CHANGING ATTITUDES How my fight against racism TOY STORY The Late Late Show tradition brings the helped transform Ireland Pages 6-7
Irish soccer player you’ve probably never heard of
fun factor to Britain See Rí-Rá
Page 36
SISTER RITA TO THE RESCUE As the number of people living in poverty hits 13million in Britain, an inspirational Cork nun believes the Government must do more to help BY NEMESHA BALASUNDARAM AN IRISH nun is urging the Government to adopt new measures to help low-income families in Britain, for whom hunger remains a desperate concern. With 13million people living below the poverty line in Britain, and food banks being used to feed over a million people over the last year, of which 396,997 were children, there are continued pleas nationwide for emergency support. Sister Rita Lee, a Cork native, runs a drop-in centre and food bank for the most vulnerable people in one of Manchester’s poorest regions, Colly-
hurst, and has served the community there for over 50 years. Based at St Malachy’s Primary School in Eggington Street, the Lalley Centre, supported by Irish Community Care in Manchester, offers debt, welfare, and food poverty support to those in need. According to British hunger charity The Trussell Trust, there is often a significant rise in numbers of people needing food banks in winter, as people on low incomes face choices between eating and heating. Last December referrals to food banks were 53 per cent higher than the average across other months, with the charity providing 130,000 three-
Get the
day food supplies to people in crisis in just one month. Sister Rita has led the Lalley Centre since 2007, and it is this week the focus of a new five-part BBC series, Sister Rita to the Rescue, which will aim to highlight the plight of young families and those on low salaries who are affected by Government cuts and sanctions. Speaking to The Irish Post, she said: “I’m not a politician, but I know that more definitely needs to be done. I want social enterprise, either a supermarket or things built here to build jobs. It’ll lift them out of the poverty, creating businesses will also provide jobs for people.”
Continued on page 2
SOCIAL CALLING: Sister Rita Lee’s work in the community is the focus of a new BBC series
on Saturday for
ONLY 50p
See INSIDE for details
