United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson has joined host of football clubs and footballers to commend Marcus Rashford’s successful campaign to extend the children’s food voucher scheme into the summer holidays.
Johnson on Monday rejected a plea from England international Rashford for children who qualified for the food voucher scheme during the coronavirus lockdown to carry on receiving them after the academic year ends.
But Rashford's open letter to MPs resulted in a Government U-turn on Tuesday.
This has made the Manchester United striker to earn praises from teammates, football clubs and sports stars after the UK Government announced a one-off £120 million fund which will benefit some 1.3 million children in England over the six-week summer period.
In Tuesday’s coronavirus press conference, Prime Minister Johnson said he had spoken to Rashford to “congratulate him” on his campaign, adding: “I thank him for what he’s done.”
Rashford's club also tweeted: “A hero. An inspiration. One of our own. We are so proud of you, @MarcusRashford.”
But local rivals also took to social media to praise the young Englishman’s work.
Manchester City tweeted: “Fantastic work @MarcusRashford, making Manchester proud.”
Down the M62, Liverpool also complimented Rashford, posting: “Children in our region will benefit because of the actions of this remarkable role model.
“From Liverpool With Love.”
Tottenham’s official account posted: “Amazing work, @MarcusRashford. This will make a huge difference to so many young people across our communities.”
Former England striker Gary Lineker praised Rashford for his “extraordinary campaign and win”, posting: “Great to see @ManUtd’s number 10 changing policy at number 10.”
The Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) described Rashford’s work as an “amazing achievement”.
One of his current team-mates, Harry Maguire said his efforts were “top class”.
