Duke pays tribute to 999 crews’ hard work in person
MINE’S A PINT: WILLIAM SAYS HE’S LOOKING FORWARD TO BEING ABLE TO DRINK IN LOCAL
THE DUKE of Cambridge has joked that he is looking forward to having a pint in the pub, as he praised ambulance staff for “all your hard work”.
William visited crews from King’s Lynn Ambulance Station at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital to learn how they have been coping during the pandemic – his first face-to-face meeting with the public in months. The Duke paid tribute to the NHS as a whole, when he spoke about the weekly applause for health and care workers that recently came to an end. He said: “Was Clap for Carers a big deal for you? It was powerful, wasn’t it?
“We are very busy and when everyone stops and finds a way to acknowledge, very publicly and very visibly, what the service does (that’s) very important.”
In a lighter moment, the duke joked: “I look forward to messages when we can drink more and go out to the local pub and have a pint.”
THE SINCERITY of the levellingup agenda has been called into question by a Hull MP after the impact of coronavirus on employment was made clear.
Both Hull and Bradford were ranked among the worst 15 cities in the country for the biggest increases in unemployment claims since lockdown began, analysis of Office for National Statistics (ONS) data by the Centre for Cities has revealed.
The two cities both saw a rise in the number of claimants by 3.9 per cent between March and May – a total increase of more than 19,000. Hull also had the second highest proportion of people claiming unemployment benefits overall – with 16,425 claimants, showing a 9.8 per cent rise in May. Bradford was not far behind at fourth, with 29,970 or a 9.1 per cent increase.
The stark divide of the social inequality affecting the region was also evident in that York saw the smallest increase in new claimants across the entirety of the UK from March to May – with a 2.3 per cent rise. Labour MP for Hull East Karl Turner said the figures showed the “devastating impact” Covid-19 had had on Hull’s economy.
“This is further proof, if more were needed, that the Government need to make good on their promise to do ‘whatever it takes’ to protect livelihoods,” he said.
“Hull is one of eight Northern cities and towns in the 10 highest claimant areas – the Government have much, much more to do if they are sincere in their pledge to build a Northern Powerhouse and ‘level-up’.”
Centre for Cities’ chief executive Andrew Carter said a tailored plan is needed for recovery from lockdown. He said: “The Government should also be cautious about how it winds down the furlough scheme. In addition to having the second highest share of adults claiming unemployment benefits, one in four workers in
Hull have been furloughed. If this support is withdrawn too quickly it could make a bad situation worse.”
The ONS figures show an increase of almost a third in the number of young claimants between April and May – but the figure has more than doubled since January. Youth homelessness charity Centrepoint, which supports 150 people in Bradford, has warned the country is in “uncharted territory” with an unprecedented number of young people claiming universal credit.
Chief executive Seyi Obakin said the statistics were “confirmation that young people will be amongst the hardest hit” when it comes to the economic impact of coronavirus.
Brandon Cavill, 22, has been unemployed since December and has been living at Centrepoint’s hostel in Bradford for five months. He said: “Initially I thought I’d only be here for two months, get a job, and find my own place. I have searched for jobs online, but it would be much easier to be able to go out in person and speak to employers and show them what I can do – that’s impossible at the moment.”