Coronavirus crisis in Britain update

This 11 April 2020 British TV video says about itself:

NHS staff risking their lives due to PPE shortage, says British Medical Association

Health care workers are risking their lives because they still don’t have the right protective gear, the British Medical Association has warned.

The government is facing growing criticism for urging health workers not to over-use protective equipment, calling it a “precious resource”.

By Lamiat Sabin in Britain, 23 April 2020:

‘Terrified’ Euston Station workers call for help after death of colleague

Staff call on government and Labour leader Keir Starmer to intervene after boss orders them to continue travelling into work

“HEARTBROKEN” Euston Station workers whose work is non-essential called on the government today to intervene after the death of a colleague.

The staff said their employer has ordered over 100 of them to come into work.

Transport union TSSA’s Euston Branch members wrote to Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer — who is also the station’s constituency MP — to also ask him for help.

From daily The Morning Star in Britain, 23 April 2020:

RMT blast TfL for not providing Tube cleaners with free travel

RAIL workers’ union RMT blasted a “disgraceful and disgusting” decision by Transport for London (TfL) to deny free travel to Tube train cleaners during the coronavirus crisis today.

The union said the decision to ban the key workers from the right to free travel despite the current crisis was dismissed via a “short and blunt letter.”

RMT general secretary Mick Cash said: “It is nothing short of a scandal that thousands of Tube cleaners who have put themselves right on the line, working round the clock in risky conditions to keep London’s essential workers moving, are being denied free travel on the transport network in the midst ‎of this pandemic crisis.

From daily The Morning Star in Britain, 23 April 2020:

Indian workers call for the regulation of undocumented immigrants to save lives during coronavirus crisis

INDIAN workers in Britain called on Prime Minister Boris Johnson today to regularise all undocumented immigrants living and working in Britain to save lives during the coronavirus pandemic.

In a letter to the PM, Indian Workers’ Association GB general secretary Joginder Bains said that, despite the government being aware of the “immense financial contributions” of irregular immigrants to the British economy, their right to be part of society is “overlooked”.

Ms Bains said that while the government’s offer of healthcare and medical treatment to all was welcome, illegal immigrants have no faith that they won’t be deported if they seek help.

By Bethany Rielly in Britain, 23 April 2020:

Coronavirus is taking a ‘catastrophic’ toll on the mental health of medical workers, think tank warns

THE coronavirus pandemic is having a “catastrophic” impact on the mental health of medical workers, the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) warned today.

YouGov polling for the left-wing think tank found that 50 per cent of 996 healthcare workers questioned across Britain said that their mental health had declined over the past two months.

The figure was even higher – 71 per cent – for staff new to the profession.

By Ali Wilkin in Britain, 23 April 2020:

A phone call that made the world fall apart

ALI WILKIN reports on the case of Jason, a disabled teenager, who was left distraught after his GP surgery sought to place him on a do not resuscitate notice

JASON is 16, and is currently trying to work out how many people he knows who he can trust with his life.

“Do you think this is how it felt, y’know, in Germany in the 1930s, when all those people were waiting to find out how many of their neighbours wanted them as dead as the nazi government?”

Earlier this month, Jason’s whole world fell apart. He’d been fixing himself a drink, while his younger siblings were loudly doing their school work. The phone rang, and Jason picked it up.

By Niall Christie in Scotladnd, 23 April 2023:

Women asylum-seekers living in fear in government-provided accommodation in Scotland

WOMEN asylum-seekers with no financial support are living in fear after being removed from their accommodation and placed in hotels in close proximity to men, charities warned today.

Serious concerns have been raised about accommodation being provided by Home Office contractor Mears in Glasgow, with vulnerable women isolated in rooms next to men.

The warnings follow reports that Mears had stopped allowances and moved more than 300 asylum-seekers in Glasgow into hotels where social distancing is “impossible.”

From daily The Morning Star in Britain, 23 April 2020:

Unison Wales demands investigation into why black people are disproportionately affected by coronavirus

AN INVESTIGATION into why black people have been disproportionately affected by the Covid-19 crisis must take place urgently, Unison Cymru Wales demanded today.

Warning that BAME health-service and care workers are dying disproportionately in the pandemic, the union also highlighted the risks of unemployment and hardships faced by higher numbers of black people in insecure and low-paid jobs.

Unison urged NHS employers to identify workforce data which could provide a better understanding of the impact of Covid-19 on black staff.

By Peter Lazenby in Britain, 22 April 2020:

Homeless on the rise in Manchester during lockdown

HUNDREDS of people have been made homeless during the coronavirus lockdown, Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham said today.

At a weekly briefing on the region’s response to the pandemic, Mr Burnham said that 344 people had been recorded as newly homeless and requiring accommodation since the strict social-distancing rules were introduced.

He revealed that the Greater Manchester Combined Authority had helped find housing for 1,140 homeless people during the crisis, but 115 people across the region were still sleeping rough.