Dear John

The four-day Easter weekend looks set to be a sunny one. In normal times, many of us would be excited by the prospect of spending time with family or friends, maybe heading out for a meal or firing up the BBQ.  But sadly these are not normal times.

Since lockdown began, I have been shining a light on the kindness and resilience of Londoners.  It’s these acts of compassion that are providing comfort for many of us - lifting spirits in tough times - and I’ll continue to highlight them over the coming weeks, just as I have with the examples at the bottom of this email. 

But today I feel that it is also important to directly acknowledge the tragedy of what is happening around us.  When I wrote to you this time last week, 2,921 people had sadly died after testing positive for Coronavirus. Today that figure has reached 7,978. In addition, Prime Minister Boris Johnson remains in an intensive care unit. 

My heart goes out to each and every person, family and community who is experiencing the worst of this crisis. And my deep gratitude goes out to all the NHS members of staff and key workers who are risking their own lives every day to keep the rest of us safe.

It is for all of them, that no matter how much the sun shines or our friends beckon this weekend, we must all stay at home. Stick to the rules and help to save lives.

It’s not going to be easy but I wish you all the very best and I hope you can nevertheless find creative ways to celebrate and come together in lockdown.  

Kind regards

Siobhan Benita

Lib Dem Candidate for Mayor of London

p.s. In case you missed it, here’s the clip of Emily Maitlis powerfully highlighting the inequality at the heart of the Coronavirus pandemic’s impact

CORONA KINDNESS 

Send me your (or your children’s!) easter themed drawings for some Easter fun (Siobhan Benita Facebook)

Coronavirus: Teacher walks five miles a day to deliver free school meals to children (Sky News)

92-year-old coronavirus survivor from Ickenham who lived through the Blitz returns home in time for wife's 93rd birthday (MyLondon)

80 things to do when you’re stuck at home (TimeOut London)

NHS: Premier League players' initiative to generate & distribute funds (BBC Sport)

Mayoral candidate calls for all capital’s supermarket workers to be paid London Living Wage (On London)

Free Resources for digital mental wellbeing (Good Thinking) 

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