Rick Lowe

Seems the answer to the question in the title is a resounding no.

Turns out many of the "rioters" were simply stealing goodies they wanted, not things they needed as this recent article by Neil O'Brien in The Telegraph points out.

Here's a very pertinent point:

"Instead of thinking we can cure poverty and crime by spending more on benefits and tax credits, the best way to tackle both is to think about root causes."

I'm not sure how much of this relates to what's going here, but it's all worth considering I think.