More people are depending on food banks than ever before in Britain, new figures show. 

 “Ever-increasing” numbers of households – including pensioners, NHS staff and teachers – seek help amid the cost of living crisis.

Cost of living increases was given as the biggest problem, followed by inadequate wages and waiting times for initial universal credit payments. A third of independent food banks said benefit sanctions and deductions were a driving factor.

New research by the Independent Food Aid Network (Ifan), shared with the Observer, found that almost 90% of food banks surveyed reported increased demand in December 2022 and January 2023 compared with a year earlier.

 Half of the 85 organisations running 154 food banks that responded said if demand rose further they would either have to cut support or turn people away.

The Trussell Trust, the UK’s biggest provider, between April and September alone  distributed 1.3m emergency food parcels – a third more than the same period in 2021 and over 50% more than pre-pandemic.

Food banks are struggling to meet record demand from people who are in work – including NHS staff and teachers – the Ifan research found. More than 80% reported supporting a significant number of people for the first time, while many said demand was growing among pensioners and families with babies.

Sabine Goodwin, Ifan coordinator, said: “It’s very clear that people have been trying to muddle through the winter on credit and are now building up debts that will push people over the edge.” Accusing the government of “unsustainable and unethical” reliance on charitable food aid, she said that without a change of approach there will be “nowhere for people to turn”.

Many food banks are also reporting issues with burnout among staff and volunteers. Judith Vickers, from Lifeshare in Manchester, said: “Staff are reporting burnout, heavy caseloads, and a constant stream of new referrals. We are coping, but the level of demand is relentless. Volunteers often feel that we can’t do enough for people.”

Food inflation is at 16.7% and the cost of gas is nearly 130% higher than a year ago. The Office for Budget Responsibility forecast in November that households’ disposable income would fall by 4.3% in 2022-23, the largest drop since comparable records began in 1956.

Revealed: record number of households in UK depending on food banks | Food banks | The Guardian

 The cost of consumer goods in France jumped 6% in January in annual terms from 5.9% in December, conclusive data by the country’s statistics agency Insee showed on Friday.

The higher consumer price index (CPI) rate was prompted by an acceleration in food costs, which were up 13.3% year-on-year, and in energy prices, which soared 16.3%. The price increases of manufactured goods and those of services have slowed, according to Insee.

The report showed that seasonally adjusted, consumer prices increased by 0.8% over a month.

The core rate, which excludes items with volatile pricing such as unprocessed food and energy, increased to 5.6% in January from 5.3% in December. Meanwhile, the European harmonized CPI was up 0.4% on the month and 7% on the year.

According to a Bank of France forecast, inflation in the country will peak in the first half of 2023, after which it will gradually slow to about 2% by the end of 2024. In December, it was reported that French food manufacturers had asked retailers to raise product prices by 15-25% from the beginning of 2023 amid inflation and rising production costs.

Economists expect inflation in the country to start easing once increases in energy prices subside. Its Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire has said that the country’s top economic priority was to bring down energy prices and spiralling inflation.”

Band Aid Not The Solution

“The Spanish social affairs minister, Ione Belarra, has called on the government to bring down prices of basic products by introducing discounts, as food costs continue to rise in the country amid double-digit inflation.

A reduction in value added tax (VAT, known in Spain as IVA) has proven insufficient as prices for essentials are still “the highest,” Belarra posted on Twitter on Thursday. She urged the ruling Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) to subsidize the basic consumer basket by 14%.

The minister also proposed bringing prices down to levels seen prior to the conflict in Ukraine, adding that Spanish “families can’t wait any longer.” She argued that the proposed subsidy would help mitigate the impact on consumers of soaring inflation, and even suggested a price intervention.

Food inflation in Spain has remained over 15% despite an IVA cut on some basic products. In January, inflation eased from 15.7% recorded in December, but was still raging at a rate of 15.4% for food and non-alcoholic drinks, the National Institute of Statistics (INE) reported on Wednesday.

Cash-strapped households in Spain have taken a hit from surging costs of most meats, fish, yoghurt, butter, cereals, coffee, tea and baby food, as these items were not classified as basics and did not receive a tax cut.

The overall January inflation reading was higher than INE expected, and stood at 5.9% with a 0.6% rise from December.”

https://www.rt.com/business/

Dave C

Tens of thousands of Irish people marched through Dublin to make clear their opposition to recent violent attacks on migrants and rallies claiming the country “is full” and can’t accept refugees.

They carried signs saying, “Protect Lives, Not Borders” and “Everyone Is Welcome.”

They called on the government to ensure there is enough housing for everyone and to address the cost-of-living crisis—which advocates said the far-right is exploiting to drum up anti-immigration sentiment. Late last month, a group of Irish men attacked an encampment inhabited by several migrants from India, Croatia, Hungary, Poland, and Scotland. They descended on the camp with baseball bats, sticks, and dogs and shouted, “Get out… Pack up and get out now.” Also in January, the far-right applauded rallies that broke out in Dublin and surrounding towns, with attendees declaring Ireland is “for the Irish.”

Paul Murphy, a People Before Profit-Solidarity politician who represents Dublin South West, called Saturday’s rally “a powerful response to the attempts to spread division and hate.”

A rise in racism across Ireland “has been deliberately been stoked up by organizers of the far-right,” Bríd Smith of the ecosocialist group People Before Profit told The Independent. “We had [cost-of-living] crises long before refugees came, long before the Ukrainian war.”

Many spoke out about the need for public and affordable housing, which they said should be prioritized over expensive new developments.

“All around the city we see cranes building more offices, hotels, and flash apartments for rental only as our government welcomes vulture and hedge fund capitalists into Ireland,” said musician Christy Moore. “What we need is social housing.”

“There are enough resources in this country for everyone to have a decent home, job, and services and welcome refugees,” said Murphy. “We need to unite against those who currently hoard that wealth.”

‘Ireland For All’: Tens of Thousands March in Dublin to Support Refugees (commondreams.org)

 The World Socialist Movement sends its profound sympathy to the countless victims of the war, to the Russian and Ukrainian people, to the persecuted millions of human beings who are tormented by boundless sufferings and who have had to bear untold horrors. 

 The World Socialist Movement vows to carry on the task of awakening the revolutionary spirit in the workers of the world, uniting them in the struggle against the fratricidal war and against capitalist society. The workers have nothing to gain from this war. Capitalists and capitalist politicians are divided into two types, good and bad, according as they are ‘non-appeasers’ and ‘appeasers’. Capitalism is no longer the breeder of wars; the war now resulted from ‘fascist’ aggression, be it NATO/Ukrainian or Putin/Russian. If the West wants to expand, Russia is equally determined not to let it do so, and we should be still more determined not to let the people’s blood be shed for the aggrandisement of the governing class of either side.

In order to successfully understand war and the lies, it is necessary to know the causes and nature of war. War is an inevitable result of the capitalist system which is based on competition and exploitation, on private rather than social ownership of the means of production. Competition among the Great Powers for markets, natural resources and territory gives- rise to inter-capitalist wars. Since war is inseparable from capitalism it follows that the “abolition” of war is possible only through the overthrow of capitalism, the building of socialism and the elimination of classes and class exploitation. 

In order to build a genuine anti–war movement it is our task to expose the pie-in-the-sky Utopias of many idealistic pacifists. Pacifism is powerless against war since it is not based on a clear analysis of the causes of war. In practice, it aids war: by spreading illusions about the nature of war and the fight against it; by shifting the opponents of the war to a fictitious fight against it; by sugar-coating the realities of capitalist society and thus making them – including war – more palatable

Capitalism without war is impossible. Those people who believe in miracles, who nourish hope and trust in illusions, think the consequences may in some way be avoided, that peace may be maintained and armed conflicts avoided, without destroying the social system which breeds it. The real struggle against war is inseparable from the struggle against capitalism. Sentimental attitudes against war divert from the struggle against the basic cause of war, capitalism. War is not the cause of the troubles of society. The opposite is true. War is a symptom and result, of the irreconcilable troubles and conflicts of the present form of society, that is to say, of capitalism.  The only possible struggle AGAINST war is the struggle FOR socialism. 

The Socialist Party is absolutely clear on this point. There is no “separate” or “special” struggle against war. The struggle against war cannot be divorced from the class war. No party can uphold capitalism and fight against war, because capitalism means war. Only a revolutionary socialist can fight against war because only a revolutionist takes the road to the overthrow of capitalism. It is the business of the Marxist, upon the outbreak of war, to work to turn that war into a class war, a war for the overthrow of the capitalist states.

 The Socialist Party is the Anti-War Party. The Socialist Party stands for something different and better than capitalist enslavement. The socialist revolution can and will eliminate war because, by overthrowing the capitalist economy and supplanting capitalism with a cooperative commonwealth, it will remove the causes of war. With socialism, there will no longer exist basic contradictions that lead to war. The expansion of the means of production, under the ownership and control of society as a whole, will proceed in accordance with a rational plan adjusted to the needs of the members of society.

What type of society do we want to live in? A society in which we face constant fear, insecurity and hardship – capitalism? Or a society in which we can live in harmony with other human beings  – socialism?

“Of course, the oligarchs run Russia. But guess what? Oligarchs run the United States as well. And it’s not just the United States, it’s not just Russia; Europe, the UK, all over the world, we’re seeing a small number of incredibly wealthy people running things in their favour. A global oligarchy.” – Bernie Sanders

 “The UK’s food banks are being overwhelmed by an “unprecedented” increase in demand amid double-digit inflation and the cost-of-living crisis, new research has found.

According to the survey published on Sunday by the Independent Food Aid Network (IFAN), an institution uniting more than 550 independent food banks, 89% of organizations have seen a rise in the number of people seeking support in December and January as compared to the same period one year ago.

Moreover, over 80% of food banks reported that many Britons who were asking for help were doing so for the first time in their lifetime. About 50% of the organizations covered in the survey also said that if demand increased, they would be forced to cut the volume of assistance or to refuse some applicants altogether.

The document attributed these developments mainly to increases in the cost of living. These have been spurred by skyrocketing inflation and soaring energy prices, exacerbated by the sanctions the West imposed on Russia over the Ukraine conflict. Other reasons include inadequate wages and the waiting time needed to receive a first social security payment from authorities, as well as benefit deductions.

Warning that the current situation is “unsustainable,” IFAN urged the UK government to increase social security assistance to match the rising day-to-day costs, and to eliminate the five-week waiting period to receive a first social security check.

While in recent months inflation in the UK has somewhat eased up, as of January it still amounted to 10.1%. Meanwhile, food inflation reached 16.7% in the same month.

Against this backdrop, earlier this month the National Institute of Economic and Social Research claimed that UK households were suffering a “permanent” reduction in living standards amid the crisis. It also warned that seven million – or one in four – British households would be unable to fully cover their energy and food bills from this April, when the government starts scaling back its subsidies program.”

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Dave C.

 The oil company Shell and energy trader Vitol have been accused of exploiting a “loophole” in the EU sanctions regime to bring products derived from Russian oil into Europe through Turkey.

The EU implemented a ban on importing seaborne Russian crude oil on 5 December – the same day as a G7 price cap on Russian seaborne exports – and the ban was extended on 5 February to refined products such as diesel and fuel oil.

However, refineries in India and Turkey have increased their imports from Russia since the start of the war and have been accused of providing a “back door” for Russian oil exports to be refined, re-badged and exported around the world.

Analysis of data from commodity tracker Kpler by the non-profit group Global Witness found that Shell had imported more than 600,000 barrels of refined products into the Netherlands from Turkish refineries known to import Russian oil since 5 December.

While it cannot be proved whether the products were definitely derived from Russian crude, Turkish refineries are importing vast quantities from Russia, which can then be immediately refined or blended with crude from other nations.

Global Witness showed that in 2022 Turkey imported 143m barrels of crude from Russia, a 50% increase from 2021. One refinery dominated that trade – Star in Aliaga, on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast. The refinery is owned by the Turkish division of Azerbaijan’s state oil firm Socar. It took more than 60m barrels of crude from Russia in 2022, 73% of its imports. The Izmit and Aliaga refineries, owned by Tüpraş, the largest refinery company in Turkey, also handled Russian-origin crude.

Vitol, the world’s largest independent energy trader, sourced 2.77m barrels from the Star and Izmit refineries for delivery to Latvia, Cyprus and the Netherlands since the start of the war in Ukraine.

The EU imported 5m barrels of refined products from Turkey since 5 December, and 20m barrels from refineries that handle Russian oil during 2022. Star alone sold 17m barrels of refined products into the EU in 2022. Europe continues to import about 250,000 barrels a day via pipeline from Russia as it attempts to balance hurting the Russian economy with concerns over supplies and fuel prices.

Shell and Vitol accused of prolonging Ukraine war with sanctions ‘loophole’ | Shell | The Guardian

 ‘You load sixteen tons, what do you get?

Another day older and deeper in debt

Saint Peter, don’t you call me ’cause I can’t go

I owe my soul to the company store’

Tennessee Ernie Ford

“US credit card debt inched close to a trillion dollars in the fourth quarter of 2022, the New York Federal Reserve Bank said in its quarterly report on household debt, released on Thursday.

According to the data, Americans’ credit card balances jumped by $61 billion to $986 billion in the last three months of the year, a record high in the entire history of its observation since 1999.

Total household debt exceeded $16.9 trillion. Authorities attribute the growth to stubbornly high consumer prices, strong consumer spending and repeated key interest-rate hikes, which pushed credit card interest rates to nearly 20%.

Bank customers were also seen delaying loan payments more frequently, which, according to New York Fed researchers, is “worrying.”

The current credit card balance figure is a major reversal from two years ago when US consumers were paying off their debts using stimulus money they received during Covid-19 lockdowns and lowering their overall expenses, such as vacations, because of the pandemic. That led to a decline in credit card balances, which dropped to $770 billion in early 2021 compared to $890 billion in the same period a year earlier.

Overall, US credit card debt soared by $130 billion last year, the biggest annual growth on record. Analysts expect the Federal Reserve to pass several more rate hikes this year, pushing credit card borrowing costs higher.

“It’s triple trouble for credit card borrowers. Balances are up, rates are up and more people are carrying credit card debt,” Ted Rossman from Bankrate analytics firm told Bloomberg, noting that the number of credit card holders carrying debt jumped to 46% last year from 39% the year before that.

The previous credit card debt record of $927 billion was set by US consumers in the fourth quarter of 2019.”

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Dave C.

 At least 18 people, including a child, have been found dead in Bulgaria in an abandoned lorry near the capital Sofia. Those discovered were from Afghanistan and were being smuggled to Serbia.

“There has been a lack of oxygen to those who were locked in this truck. They were freezing, wet, they have not eaten for several days.”

In the UK, five anti-migrant demonstrations are happening over this weekend and being promoted by the far-right groups Britain First and Patriotic Alternative.

“I fled Syria because of fear of death in my country and now I’m living in fear here,” said one asylum seeker.

One asylum seeker at the hotel in Dunstable said: “We are in a dangerous situation. We are at risk and are scared to go outside the hotel. Everyone is in stress…”

76% of South Koreans believe the nation should develop and deploy its own nuclear weapons to serve as a deterrent.

 Many in the South have been alarmed at the perceived fragility of the security alliance that has tied the US to Seoul since the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950.  Questions have grown about Washington’s commitment to the alliance as trade rivalries have increased. 

While in power, President Donald Trump strong-armed Seoul into sharply increasing the amount it paid to keep US troops in the South by threatening to withdraw US forces from the peninsula.

   The US has taken a firmer stance on imports of South Korean electric vehicles and is shifting away from a long reliance on Korean semiconductor manufacturers. 

 “The fact that the US does not subsidize Korean electric vehicles and tries to compete in the semiconductors industry is creating anxiety for South Korea,” explained politics Professor Hyobin Lee at Chungnam National University. “South Koreans do not trust the nuclear umbrella provided by the US.” She added, “How can we trust someone for protection if they treat us as a competitor?” 

The sense is that if Washington cannot be trusted on trade, then how can Seoul be absolutely certain US forces will be committed in the event of another invasion from the North or a threat to South Korea from China? 

Some are placing their support behind a homegrown nuclear capability. They say it would permit Seoul to rely less heavily on the defensive umbrella provided by the US, enable a drawdown of US military personnel and ensure that South Koreans made decisions for themselves on matters of national security.  The acquisition of nuclear weapons was once a topic for the political fringe but has now become a mainstream element of security discussions.   

Another reason for that support is a concept called “unwanted use theory.”  According to the theory, as the credibility of US power and preparedness to use nuclear weapons from bases in South Korea increases, that paradoxically makes the South more of a target for its regional rivals, either as a pre-emptive strike or in retaliation.  

President Yoon Suk-yeol in January said his nation might need to acquire a nuclear capability or, at the very least, play a more active role in managing US weapons that could be reintroduced to the South, seeking a return of tactical nuclear weapons or nuclear sharing.

if South Korea were to try to create its own nuclear deterrent, it would take less than one year to develop a weapon.  Any such decision would also mean Seoul would be abandoning its commitments under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty

South Korea: Why support for nukes is on the rise – DW – 02/17/2023