Back in 2018, Michael Gove, when secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs, commissioned a report on the UK’s food needs and expectations.

This summer, the report’s author Henry Dimbleby published National Food Strategy, covering areas including those of the neediest in our society.

It was much criticised by left wing commentators at the time, but footballer Marcus Rashford read it.

Its recommendations on food poverty met with his approval. Last weekend, measures within that report were put into action by the government.

A couple of weeks ago, I made the point in the column that if we believe in free school meals – which I certainly do – then why are we allowing the same children to go for up to six weeks without support during holidays?

These latest proposals build on our existing Holiday Activities and Food Programme with an extra £220 million. And we are providing an extra £170 million for the Covid Winter Grant Scheme.

This is, of course, in addition to the extra £1,000 in working tax credit we granted in April, building on the temporary food voucher scheme introduced to help through the summer.

It is great that Marcus Rashford has supported these measures and worked with the government to deliver a thoughtful and appropriate response to both immediate problems facing families, but also the long term problems of poverty.

It is often the case that people will look for the first time and see a problem, without realising that the government has been working on these issues for some time.

Feeding those in need is not always as simple as handing out food vouchers – although they can and do help in an emergency.

There is more that can be done.

We have increased local housing benefits, worth an extra £600 a year to those in most need. This help extends to those in the private sector, with mortgage holidays and support with council tax available.

And as part of our longer term help, the National Living Wage got its largest cash boost, giving those on minimum wage an extra 6p in the £ - equivalent to an extra £930 a year. That’s an extra £3,600 since its introduction in 2016.

Add that to the increase in the starting level of tax, and those on the lowest pay will be over £5,000 better off since 2010.

Supporting the most vulnerable in our society is probably the most important thing we can do, and defines us as a nation.