As Christmas approaches and many of us are thinking about buying a turkey and all the trimmings, along with all the associated festive food and drink, it is impossible not to spare a thought for those who are going hungry in our own communities.

It seems incredible that there are many families in the Bradford district who will be relying on food bank handouts to feed them and their children over the holiday period.

But the latest figures speak for themselves. In the first six months of this year, Bradford’s emergency food bank delivered 21,996 emergency meals.

A report by a group of MPs cited Bradford and other cities huge rises in food bank use. In total, 2,444 people used them between April and September this year, compared to just 748 two year’s previously.

Heartbreakingly, 890 of those people were children, an increase from 247 in 2012.

There are many political arguments about why so many are turning to such aid, but the bottom line is, this should not be happening.

It is intolerable hildren are going hungry when so many of us have so much on our plates, and whatever the arguments about how people spend their money – and some of them are very valid arguments – this surely cannot be allowed to continue.

Hopefully Feeding Britain: A Blueprint for Abolishing Hunger will be a starting point for the Government to take some direct action to alleviate this problem.

Whether that is helping people to help themselves, improving the way benefits are paid for those on the poverty line, or a combination of these and other actions is not important – what is making sure no child is going hungry next Christmas.