Opposition legislation aimed at providing the needy with food has been approved by the Senate.

The Good Samaritan Food Donation Act won bipartisan support in the House of Assembly at the end of a four-hour debate in which the Government side started out against it.

The Act was brought by Progressive Labour Party MP Kim Wilson, the shadow minister of health.

While only a page and a half in length, the Bill carries a “huge” potential impact, Diallo Rabain, the Opposition Senate Leader, told the Upper House. “It can only help our people virtually immediately,” he said. The legislation is designed to clarify the liabilities faced by food donors and to make it easier for leftovers to go safely to hungry people.

Georgia Marshall of the OBA backed it, but said that it mirrored the Volunteer Liability Act 2000 — calling it “identical” to an Act that already exists.

However, James Jardine, an Independent, said that it went into more detail on a donor’s duty to inform recipients about food and their duty to take care while donating, while the PLP’s Marc Daniels suggested the two Acts could in time be amalgamated. Jeff Baron, on the OBA side, added that even if it duplicated other legislation, it would still help to nudge potential donors into addressing the needs of others.

The Act came from a proposal made by the Eliza DoLittle Society charity, PLP MP Renee Ming pointed out.

“I challenge the legal minds to work together to fine-tune it and clean it up,” said Sen Ming, who noted such fine-tuning had been promised by the OBA in the 2013 Throne Speech.

Government senator Michael Fahy agreed that the promise had been made under the Ministry of Home Affairs, which he oversees, but agreed with Sen Marshall that the Attorney-General’s chambers had advised that the Volunteer Liability Act had already covered donations.

“It was a proposal made by this government and after further work was done, we believed that a further Act was not necessary,” said Sen Fahy, adding that this had been the reason behind the OBA’s initial resistance.

But he said the new legislation would help to raise awareness of existing legislation and that collaboration was necessary to co-ordinate the provision of meals around the Island.

Sen Rabain responded: “We’ve just heard that the Volunteer Liability Act covers that — but we have not heard a word that it does in 20 months.”