I WENT to the licensing of the Reverend Fiona Crocker last Sunday at St George’s Church in Cam. 

I always try to attend these events as I feel that it is an important part of my responsibilities as MP, welcoming new members of the clergy to the area by attending their induction.

As a Christian I often feel that the role of the church is greatly underestimated in parts of the country such as ours. 

If you add up all the activities that church members have initiated or are active participants in you get to a considerable array of different enterprises. 

Take youth, social concern and help for those in distress and you can rail off a clutch of organisations that owe their formation to churchgoers. 

This does not mean of course that this is the totality of activity. 

There are many non-Christians who partake of all manner of voluntary involvement which is why we are so fortunate to have such a rich and varied voluntary sector in Dursley and beyond.

The sad fact remains that such work is no longer really voluntary but a requirement of our society as the withdrawal of the state continues unabated. 

Therefore the importance of food banks will grow dramatically over the next few weeks and months as we witness the failings of Universal Credit which will put many more people close to destitution.

It is a sad indictment of our society that whilst we applaud Christian giving and charity that it is so needed today. 

Austerity has brought with it many downsides but the worst of them all is the notion of the undeserving poor. 

Many more individuals are now struggling, and as the benefit system becomes even more inaccessible to ordinary people there can only be one consequence to the way in which are communities are heading.

It doesn’t of course have to be this way and thankfully there are many who are demanding something different and better. 

In the short run however there is little alternative but to rely upon those groups of do-gooders, Christian or otherwise, to try to fill in the gaps left by the state’s departure. 

So I hope that as many as possible will dig deep to help those in need whether they be homeless, workless or just unfortunate. 

As we approach the season where goodwill is most pronounced it’s our duty to try to do what we can to help.

David Drew

MP for the Stroud Constituency