Dear Editor,
It is truly heart-breaking that Hackney has the third highest rate of Covid-19 deaths in England and Wales, with a total of 146 residents lost to the virus between 1st March and 18th April.
That’s according to the Office for National Statistics’ (ONS) latest report on Covid-19 deaths. Hackney sadly reached the grim total of 127.4 deaths per 100,000 population in that period and we know that numbers continue to rise.
The ONS have also confirmed a link between deprivation levels and coronavirus deaths. Clearly, this is something we cannot ignore.
Inequality continues to blight the lives of people in our community and, last year, figures released by the Government revealed that Hackney is the seventh most deprived borough in the country.
It’s scandalous that persistent inequalities have been allowed to embed themselves generation after generation. We need a strategy to fix this and leadership must come from the top. In practice, this means sustained cross-party co-operation.
This devastating pandemic is shining a light on the ever-growing chasm between the haves and have nots. We cannot return to the way things were: the time to end this gross injustice is now.
Yours,
Jennette Arnold OBE AM
London Assembly Member for Hackney, Islington and Waltham Forest