THE Gazette should be congratulated on doing what the Tory leadership of Malvern Hills District Council seem reluctant to do – canvassing the opinion of local people with its food bank online poll.

Believing that our council should not profit from the hardship of others, but instead should do all it can to alleviate suffering, I brought a notice to council asking the leadership without delay to waive the rent it charged the Malvern foodbank – thereby allowing the foodbank to extend the amazing support it gives to all areas of our district.

They would not. Now, a massive 85 per cent of those who took part in your poll have agreed it is wrong for the council to charge rent.

It’s time to stop playing party politics. The Tory leadership should do the decent thing: if they won’t listen to me, they should at last take heed of the opinion of local people.

Julian D Roskams

Mayor of Malvern