Coronavirus and your community: Ed Davey’s email to Lib Dems
As Ed Davey has rightly highlighted in an email out today, there’s an important part to play for Liberal Democrat campaigners in their communities during the coronavirus crisis: working with others to share information, boost volunteering and help those most in need.
As his email mentions, the party’s own advice to members and supporters has been updated today. Please do check it out as it has changed since the first advice issued in the light of developing events and new public health guidelines.
Here is Ed’s email in full:
We can all make a difference – each and every one of us.
One of the many things that unites Liberal Democrats is our campaigning zeal for our communities. Our drive to change things for the better. A way of working that engages local people in our campaigns.
Today, I’m asking you to turn your campaigning zeal wholeheartedly towards helping your community during this Coronavirus crisis.
To help you, we’re issuing new guidance to party members – you can find it here: www.libdems.org.uk/covid19. And we will be collecting and sharing best practice over the next few days and weeks about how our community politics can best help.
In short – I’m asking Lib Dem teams all across the UK to make community activism helping vulnerable people during this crisis our campaigning priority.
We’re a party that cares about people, cares about communities and cares about the most vulnerable. I’m proud of this party, and I’m sure we will all rise to this national challenge.
Whatever happens, we can make a difference.
Best wishes,
Ed Davey
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Please Ed Davey and our health spokesman, please get the health service to resume testing for the virus; testing everyone who reports in with symptoms and whoever is just worried. We MU ST get the basic data. Without knowing how the virus is spreading, where it is and who has it we are running blind. You cannot develop a strategy if you do not have the basic information.
In addition, people are getting more and more worried. Without testing they don’t know if what they have is Covid-19 or just a bad cold. They worry that they can’t find out if they are still at risk, both to themselves and to others, they want to know if it’s safe for them to visit their parents, or help the old lady down the road.
And this lack of testing, not collecting basic data, is undermining confidence in the medical advice being given. I certainly trust it less. I’m a scientist. I know you need information if you want to develop any sort of model of what’s happening, to make predictions and give guidance.
No one seems to be challenging it. Please be the one who does.