Our solidarity is key Communities winning fight despite Tories

PM’S GUFF OVER BLM WON’T DO

IN the last few months people across the country have dealt with situations that would have been unimaginable before.

Families have lost loved ones. Our most vulnerable have been isolated for 12 weeks. Some have lost livelihoods.

For NHS and care staff, the level of death, and the heart-breaking conversations that go along with it, have been on a magnitude never seen.

Breaking the worst news imaginable to a loved one over the phone, simply makes the trauma worse. This virus has taken the humanity out of grieving.

The country has looked for leadership throughout this crisis. While other countries were flattening the curve after taking crucial measures, the death rate in the UK continued to rise.

Hope

The Government was too slow to get much needed protective equipment to frontline NHS and care staff. It was too slow to implement lockdown. And it was too slow to roll out mass testing.

As the crisis starts to ease, we must be prepared for a surge in demand for other services. People have not had routine access to GPS. Many non-urgent hospital procedures have been postponed. As our country gradually reopens to the new normal, demand for these services will increase and it will require detailed planning.

People’s mental health and wellbeing are more important than ever.

With record job losses and an all-time high in applications for universal credit, financial worries are greater.

Families have lost loved ones without holding their hands in their final days

BORIS Johnson finally gave us his long-awaited response to the Black Lives Matter protests.

His conclusion to tackling historic racism and the structural inequalities which enforce it? An Inequality Commission.

Commissions can be great vehicles for change, but only and hours. It is simply heart-breaking how many people have not been able to say goodbye.

There has been hope in this crisis, however. Our communities have come together to ensure that our most vulnerable are not left alone.

Food and supplies have been donated to make sure our frontline NHS staff have everything they need.

Heroes such as Captain Tom Moore, have raised millions for NHS charities and other fantastic causes.

Communities have stepped up – it is time that the Government does too. It when driven by a government willing to accept their proposals.

We already know that those from a minority ethnic background are twice as likely to die from Covid-19. Is it really the time for another drawn-out commission going over the same ground? We need concrete needs to have a plan in place for what support the NHS needs, whether there’s a second wave or not.

Our mental health services need to be ready for the surge in demand. The Government has had months to make plans but we’ve heard nothing.

Boris Johnson may try to distract people by grand promises, but until they are delivered we must not stop asking. We must not stop making noise.

This week, footballer Marcus Rashford showed us all the power of having our voices heard.

A huge thank-you to all of the key action to tackle the causes of racism and inequality. We don’t need more empty words from the Government and the issue being kicked into the long grass.

The Government seems to revel in spending years defining problems but very little time actually solving them. workers who have kept our country running. The sacrifices we have all made, whether shielding, missing family birthdays, or staying away from grandparents or grandchildren – these have all been tough.

For all the families who were apart on Mother’s Day and for all the fathers missing their children today – it’s been heartbreaking but we know that it’s for the health of the nation.

Thank you to everyone who has played their part in staying home and looking out for one another. We will all get through this together.