Second homeowners in Cornwall urged to donate £400 energy rebate

theguardian.com:

Second homeowners in Cornwall are being urged to donate their £400 government energy rebates to impoverished neighbours facing hardship this winter through a scheme launched on Friday and backed by business leaders, charities and politicians.

Those behind the Donate the Rebate scheme says that if every second homeowner in Cornwall took part, £5.4m could be re-distributed from the “uber-rich”, who would hardly notice the payment, to people who desperately need help in one of northern Europe’s poorest regions.

The number of people asking for food parcels in parts of Cornwall has increased by 75% in the past 12 months, while 1,500 people are in emergency accommodation and more than 21,000 are on housing waiting lists. At the same time property prices continue to increase, inflated by people from other parts of the UK snapping up homes as bolt-holes or as investments.

Rob Love, the chief executive and co-founder of Crowdfunder, which has set up the campaign and has its headquarters close to the beach in Newquay, north Cornwall, said it was a way of redistributing money from the “haves to the have-nots”.

He said: “In times like these, we cannot just rely on governments, charities or corporations: we need a more efficient way to redistribute wealth to those who really need it. We’ve got to get ourselves out of this national emergency and everyone has got to play a part.”

Love said he thought the government’s energy bills support scheme was “quite generous” but added: “It doesn’t get all the money to the right people.”

He pointed out that millions of pounds would be going to wealthy people – probably including some MPs – who owned properties in Cornish second home hotspots such as Rock, St Ives and St Mawes. “We’re not against second