THIS is a copy of a letter sent by the St Briavels Parochial Church Council to Forest MP Mark Harper.

On February 20 an open letter, signed by 25 Anglican bishops, two bishops from the Church in Wales, 14 Methodist district chairs and two Quakers, was published in the Daily Mirror. This followed on from the statement made by Vincent Nichols (now Cardinal Nichols), the head of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales, who described the government's welfare reforms as a disgrace.

The bishops wrote: "We often hear talk of hard choices. Surely few can be harder than that faced by the tens of thousands of older people who must 'heat or eat' each winter, harder than those faced by families whose wages have stayed flat while food prices have gone up 30 per cent in just five years.

"Yet beyond even this we must, as a society, face up to the fact that over half of people using food banks have been put in that situation by cutbacks to and failures in the benefit system, whether it be payment delays or punitive sanctions."

We as members of the Parochial Church Council of St Mary the Virgin, St Briavels, applaud and support the bishops for writing their letter.

We support their call on government to "do its part: acting to investigate food markets that are failing, to make sure that work pays, and to ensure that the welfare system provides a timely, robust last line of defence against hunger."

We are not against reform of the benefit system. However what we have at present is a system that is undermining its purpose.

If someone comes off a short-term and insecure job and finds there's no money available for food, that's not an incentive to work.

There seems to be no understanding that people face financial difficulties in such circumstances – that there is often a considerable time lag between a final pay cheque and the payment of benefits.

We believe that at the heart of the benefit system there should be compassion. This seems to be very much absent at the present time.

The Christian churches have a wide social spread: they are represented all the way from the inner cities to the House of Lords.

This gives them a sense of what is happening on the ground which few politicians can hope for. A wise government would recognise this and listen.

We also respectfully suggest (if you haven't already done so) that you visit the food banks in Coleford, Cinderford and Lydney so that you may better understand the points the bishops made in their letter.

And finally we would ask that you use your influence as our MP to ensure that compassion is at the heart of our welfare system.

Thank you.

– Secretary, St Briavels Parochial Church Council.