Calls for minimum wage rise as jobholders seek food

A soup kitchen charity has called for an increase in the national minimum wage after seeing people with jobs turning to it for help.

Cork charity Penny Dinners, which dishes out up to 2,000 meals a week to the city’s needy, said it has seen struggling workers in the retail, building, and legal sectors come through its doors seeking a free meal in the last 12 months.

“Two years ago, we used to see people we didn’t know coming through our doors,” said spokeswoman Catriona Twomey. “But now we’re seeing people we all know, people we knew growing up, people from our neighbourhoods, people who were always alright, financially, but who are now really struggling.”