Daily news briefing on the crisis #NeverMoreNeeded

Fears over health sees protest cancelled

Health concerns from Glasgow's black community have halted a planned Black Lives Matter protest. Demonstrators were supposed to meet this weekend at Glasgow Green for a protest in support of victims of racism and police brutality, after the death of an unarmed black man who activists say was killed by police. Organiser Taliah Simumba said in a statement to the event's Facebook page: "It is with a heavy heart that we have decided to cancel the physical protest that was planned to take place at Glasgow Green on Sunday. "After advice from multiple organisations, including BLMUK, this is the decision we have made. We hope you realise how complex a decision attending these protests are. We have been in talks with various organisations, health professionals and have had an urgent reaction from local people of colour regarding their disapproval of this event and the potential for its repercussions." A report from Public Health England has found that ethnic minorities are at a higher risk than white people of dying from Covid-19. The Facebook post listed other ways people could support activists and organisations supporting people of colour and shows of support, including posting Black Lives Matter signs in windows and sharing resources online.

Charities warn poverty will rise

Soaring unemployment is expected to push more than a million more Britons into poverty by Christmas and is already driving up homelessness, charities are warning. Around 200,000 children are among those facing a new life below the pre-coronavirus poverty line unless ministers reform benefits, according to analysis by the Institute for Public Policy Research thinktank published on Wednesday. It has examined a Bank of England economic scenario that predicted that as a result of the lockdown measures unemployment could rise by 2 million to 3.3 million people – almost 10% of the workforce – by the end of 2020. IPPR found working families paying relatively high rents as a proportion of their income will be hit hardest by having to rely on universal credit. It is calling for ministers to increase child benefit by £5 a week, remove the two-child limit on universal credit and lift the benefit cap to prevent the rise in child poverty. The thinktank defines poverty as having less than 60% of the expected median income after housing costs that Britons would have if the pandemic had not occurred. This is equivalent to £386 per week for a household with two children under 14. In April, after lockdown, the number of people claiming universal credit surged 69% within a month to 2.1 million people.

Give and go proves a resounding success

A group of volunteers are running "Give and Go" desks where families can drop off parcels for their loved ones in hospitals. It means patients can receive a bag of treats and home comforts while confined to hospital during the pandemic. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde have a bank of these desks in the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Govan. Relatives can drop off a bag with fresh clothes, newspapers and sweets - even a charger to keep a mobile phone battery topped up so a patient can communicate with the outside world. Many of the volunteers are furloughed from their main jobs. Margaret Connolly, associate chief nurse for excellence in care for the health board, praised the volunteers. "We had a lady who dropped off a dressing gown for her mum and later that day she was able to see her mum on Facetime with her wee dressing gown on, so it's really about building people's support and giving them a confidence boost while in hospital. This is really uncharted waters for us all and we normally have our family support while we have loved ones in hospital. Obviously circumstances don't allow that at the moment, so we're trying to bridge that gap and make a positive experience."

Huge boost for food charities

People at risk from food insecurity due to the COVID-19 outbreak will receive further support as £1.6m is added to a project funded by the Scottish Government’s Food Fund. The FareShare charity, which redistributes food from suppliers to charities and organisations including local authorities, will receive the funding. The charity has distributed almost 3.5 million meals since 23 March, the Scottish Government said. The government says the money will help FareShare purchase more food for local authorities, community-run initiatives and frontline charities across Scotland. Communities Secretary Aileen Campbell said: “At this difficult time, it is more important than ever that we tackle food insecurity by supporting the work of community food distribution groups across the country who are best placed to ensure vital supplies reach those who need it most. Head of FareShare Scotland Gillian Kynoch said: “We are experiencing an enormous pull on our resources during these challenging times. While food companies continue to make their surplus food available to us, the need in communities for support with additional food remains great. This additional £1.6 million will enable us to top up our food supplies through the coming months and keep on providing food to the frontline organisations caring for and supporting people hard pressed by the current crisis.”

Disabled people have been failed during crisis

Leading disability charities have criticised the government for failing disabled people during the coronavirus crisis. Members of the Disability Charities Consortium (DCC) now warn that many services are on the brink. The government announced £750m worth of funding for the UK charity sector in April, which includes £6m in cash grants for charities supporting mental health, autism and learning disability. While some money has been made available for these charities, the DCC say it is nowhere near enough to match the demand for services, and that those with physical disabilities are being overlooked. The DCC is concerned about the lack of support for disabled people through the pandemic and in the long-term. It says many essential services may have to stop and that this could lead to “unthinkable consequences” for the future. The consortium members are: Scope, Sense, Mind, Action on Hearing Loss, the Business Disability Forum, Mencap, the National Autistic Society, RNIB, Disability Rights UK and Leonard Cheshire. The DCC estimates that their collective losses will be in the range of £50m to £75m for the year. Scope estimates its losses to be £16m to £20m and Leonard Cheshire to be £12m to £25m. Co-chairs of the DCC, Neil Heslop, chief executive of Leonard Cheshire, and Mark Hodgkinson, chief executive of Scope, said in a joint statement: “Despite repeated efforts to raise the issue, it feels like the UK’s 14 million disabled people, particularly those with physical conditions, are being forgotten and allowed to fall through the cracks.”