A group of nurses just blocked Westminster Bridge over the Tory PPE scandal

Nurses have taken matters into their own hands over the growing scandal about personal protective equipment (PPE). They blocked a major London bridge the night before International Workers’ Day. And their action also makes another important point; that the government’s own rules about key workers could, ironically, be used against them.
Going to work to die?
On Thursday 30 April, nursing staff from Guy’s and St Thomas’ hospitals in London staged a protest over the shortage of PPE. They began their protest outside St Thomas’ Hospital, and then made their way to Westminster Bridge. As ReelNews documented, they carried a large banner which said:
We are not disposable… Nobody goes to work to die
The nurses then blocked the road. And although traffic was obviously limited due to the lockdown, they still made their point; taking the message further by then hanging the banner off the bridge:
ReelNews spoke to several of the nurses. Faz, who works in intensive care, explained what the protest was about:
We’re challenging the Public Health England’s [PHE] guidelines on PPE
Read on...
Support us and go ad-free
As BBC Panorama exposed, the government and PHE had previously designated coronavirus a “High Consequence Infectious Disease”. But then, on 13 March, the government downgraded the virus. And at the same time, the government also downgraded its PPE guidance. As BBC News reported:
the government… told NHS staff they were safe to wear less protective aprons and basic surgical masks in all but the most high risk circumstances.
Now, it seems that this guidance was at best flawed. At worst, the government has put NHS staff’s lives at risk.
The psychological impact
Back at the nurses’ protest, Mark Boothroyd is a union rep and staff nurse. He told ReelNews that he and his co-workers were also protesting over:
the terrible way the government has sourced and provided us with PPE
The Canary has documented the chaos surrounding coronavirus and PPE during the pandemic. Recently, as Emily Apple wrote:
On 28 April, [health secretary Matt] Hancock was asked to make a public apology to the son of a doctor who died from coronavirus two weeks after issuing a warning about the lack of PPE.
Hancock even supported a Daily Mail campaign which delivered PPE for the NHS. He clearly missed the scandalous fact that it takes a right-wing tabloid to sort an issue he should have been on top of. But none of this helps NHS staff in the here and now. As Jolanta, an intensive care nurse, told ReelNews:
Psychologically, it’s having a big impact on the ITU [intensive treatment unit] nurses, because we’re being… played off against the ward nurses. And ward nurses are being told that they have to save the [PPE] stocks for us… everyone should be deserved protection, and we shouldn’t be being played off against each other.
But the nurses’ protest also shows something else; that certain sections of society can still go out and demonstrate, even during lockdown.
Clap for action?
Key workers, like staff from the NHS, supermarkets, and public transport, are allowed to deviate from many of the social distancing rules the rest of us are subject to. Conversely, these workers are the ones suffering some of the worst effects of the pandemic and the government’s chaotic and ill-judged management of it. So – there’s little stopping the thousands of key workers up and down the country taking to the streets in localised, ‘micro-protests’ about their grievances. Maybe, as well as clapping for our key workers, we could also spur them on with some direct action against the toxic government response to this crisis.
If you have a story related to this issue, check out our ‘Get involved’ section below:
Featured image via ReelNews – YouTube
Support us and go ad-freeGet involved
Are you a group of key workers who are planning a small protest? Have you had one that you think people need to hear about? If you have a story related to this issue, The Canary would like to hear from you. The best way to get in touch is to email us via [email protected] . But you can also reach us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Or you can comment as a member on this article. And you can reach us via SMS at +447520649472 or WhatsApp at +441179111472. We’d be honoured to hear from you.
We know everyone is suffering under the Tories - but the Canary is a vital weapon in our fight back, and we need your support
The Canary Workers’ Co-op knows life is hard. The Tories are waging a class war against us we’re all having to fight. But like trade unions and community organising, truly independent working-class media is a vital weapon in our armoury.
The Canary doesn’t have the budget of the corporate media. In fact, our income is over 1,000 times less than the Guardian’s. What we do have is a radical agenda that disrupts power and amplifies marginalised communities. But we can only do this with our readers’ support.
So please, help us continue to spread messages of resistance and hope. Even the smallest donation would mean the world to us.
-
Show Comments
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to leave a comment.Join the conversationPlease read our comment moderation policy here.