Almost a fifth of UK homes with children are going hungry in lockdown. Families who usually get free schools have been promised government help while schools are closed but the reality is a litany of missed payments and problems with vouchers. It’s not good enough. As a single parent who uses the voucher scheme I have personally experienced the issues with the food voucher system. Multiple times I've been waiting for sometimes an hour or more just for the voucher website to crash. We only received the first voucher 5 weeks into lockdown, that's 5 weeks of struggling to give my child decent food. My child is just one of 1.3million who rely on these vouchers and it's just not fair. With the pandemic, it's harder to get out and shop, harder to get to a food bank if you need to, so these vouchers are a lifeline for families that need them. Experts like the Food Foundation are calling out the government for not doing enough. Children deserve to have food on the table. Together we can make sure no child goes hungry during this crisis.

The UK Government’s draft plans to reopen our workplaces safely after the lockdown are being criticised for not going far enough. The Government are planning to issue guidelines to employers, but more needs to be done. In particular: 1. Forcing business to make risk assessments of workplaces public 2. Properly holding businesses to account to protect staff There isn’t long before the Government will set their plans in stone. Add your name to the petition now to ensure we can return to work confident that we will be kept safe.

Background The pandemic is costing the Government billions. Do we really need to spend possibly another £100 billion on a project that has already been overtaken? When taking his February decision on HS2 the Prime Minister was, advised by both his Senior Adviser and his Transport Adviser to cancel the project but the then Chancellor of the Exchequer said it could be afforded. It was said to be justified by the cost to benefit ratio. Yet some say that ratio is being distorted by writing off much expenditure already incurred. Certainly the benefit will be eroded by the new procedures we are now being forced to learn. There is already less reliance on big meetings round a table usually in London. At the same time electric powered transport is being developed not only for cars and small buses but even for aeroplanes. The focus will be on journey times from home, now often the office, to venues for many fewer physical meetings likely to be held in out of town venues or close to small regional airports. Inter City connections will not give any time saving for such journeys. Much as the mid 20th Century saw the decline of railways as we took to the Motorways, so the 21st will see the decline of InterCity as we take to InterNet. The Future Politicians of all parties aspire to leave a legacy. That of the present generation is currently set to be a transport system mismatched with the needs of a post Coronavirus society. The cost would be: * a massive increase in debt at a time when debt will already be almost overwhelming; * the destruction of ancient woodland and desecration of nature; * the risk of increasing the spread of Covid-19 from workers arriving on site for HS2 in close knit groups as has already been reported. * the risk of jeopardising the improvement of rail links in the North of England in the event of an overspend on the current HS2 budget. Planning should start for the infrastucture needed in the world to which we are now moving. This should include major improvements to local or regional rail links in the North of England but it will not include the HS2 project which should now be cancelled or at the very least deferred.

We deserve it we put our lives on the line and family at ridk

GMB Grassroots Left* is launching this petition to demand an investigation into the allegations and events surrounding the General Secretary’s recent resignation. The inept handling and reporting of the allegations testify that the GMB is not capable of conducting an investigation into its own organisation. In order to guarantee the probity of such an investigation, it must be conducted by an independent external agency to ensure no vested interest can influence the necessary action with the central objective of establishing the facts of the allegations, the events surrounding the former General Secretary’s decision and the subsequent actions of the union Executive. The terms of reference of such an investigation must include providing investigating agency with the authority to follow whatever direction it deems necessary to meet the above objectives. Central to the success of the investigation will be to provide staff affected by or privy to knowledge of the events a safe space to come forward and provide input to the investigation without fear of reprisal or victimisation. In order to guarantee transparency and the independence of the investigation, we also demand that any agency or committee to which the investigation reports includes lay membership representation. As an association of lay members, GMB Grassroots Left requests membership of such an agency or committee. The events of this issue call into question credibility and integrity of the GMB. The patent and suspicious mishandling undermines the standing of the whole trade union movement and affects all those activists ad members who adhere to and value the union movement. Therefore, we call on all GMB and trade union members and activists to sign, support and share this petition and support the call for a robust and transparent investigation to : • deliver practical recommendations • identify any wrongdoing that has occurred • acknowledge failures in managing allegations • attribute responsibility • deliver workplace justice and • provide recommendations to mitigate against future undermining of trade union ethics and principles. * GMB Grassroots Left is a rank and file organisation committed to transform the union from being a top-down institution, run like a business, into a member led bottom-up organisation, where members decide and the union apparatus provides the service it is employed to provide.

Devon County Council should issue environmental guidance for all towns, parishes and landowners to stop the constant mowing, strimming, flailing and pesticide spraying carried out all over the county in the name of 'tidiness'. Devon County Council should ensure that all Devon hedges, banks and verges are treated as wildlife and wildplant havens and cared for as a precious environmental resource. At first glance, Devon looks green and thriving but the hedges are flailed to extinction, the fields are monocultures of grass, the verges cut indiscriminately. Devon is a largely rural county and has a huge role to play in increasing environmental diversity and preventing the decline and destruction of nature. Most individuals and organisations that own or manage the natural landscape in Devon do so for reasons other than to care for nature. We urgently need strong policy and guidance from the County Council to to prevent the ongoing decline and disappearance of native species. We need strong leadership and sanctions to give nature a chance. The way the natural environment is managed can be so much better, if only we had proper guidance from those who have the power to make this change.

BA has announced plans to lay off up to 12,000 employees, despite already having suspended more than 22,000 under the UK Government's furlough scheme. This affects a huge number of long term staff. Trade unions have described the redundancies as "an act of smash and grab opportunism", "a huge blow" and "irresponsible, dangerous and destructive". If everyone reading this signs the petition then we can show BA that now is not the time to lay off loyal staff or make the remaining ones sign inferior contracts

This requirement can prevent children, pedestrians, wheelchair users, cyclists and others from being able to move around safely in their local area due to a lack of infrastructure. Essential path upgrades and new paths cannot be constructed as only 50% of the cost is provided by the funder. The remaining 50% must be match funded and has to be found by other means which are often unavailable or don’t exist at all. This is a massive obstacle to enabling sustainable travel in Scotland.

While key workers are focused on looking after us, we should be focused on looking after them. Our key workers have been working tirelessly throughout the Coronavirus pandemic. Many of these workers have historically been some of the lowest paid in our society. We want to begin to right that wrong, starting with an additional £2 per hour. These key workers include NHS workers, carers, frontline council workers, school support staff, nursery workers, retail workers, transport, contact centre and low paid factory workers. And let’s not forget the ‘unseen’ public service workers many of them working from home who are keeping our benefits, tax and other essential systems of government. They deserve all of our praise AND a raise!

The petition is framed within the following context: 1. The modifications to the death registration process made as part of the Coronavirus Act 2020 (https://nafd.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/GROCircular-5-2020.pdf); 2. Written statement by the Welsh Government 21 April 2020 on the subject of COVID19 and Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Communities, presented by Vaughan Gething, Minister for Health and Social Services (https://gov.wales/written-statement-covid-19-and-bame-communities); 3. The rising alarm in the UK (and beyond) on the impact COVID19 is having on minoritised populations, including those living in Wales (https://www.newscientist.com/article/2241278-an-unequal-society-means-covid-19-is-hitting-ethnic-minorities-harder/ ); 4. The significant numbers of people from minoritised backgrounds working in the health (7) and social care sectors (https://nafd.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/GROCircular-5-2020.pdf ; 5. The revelation that some Welsh health boards have a higher representation of employees from BME backgrounds than in the local population, with one example being that in Hywel Dda LHB, 6.8% of the workforce are from BME backgrounds, compared with 2.7% of the local population (https://seneddresearch.blog/2020/04/15/coronavirus-equality-issues ); 6. Calls made by the British Medical Council (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/18/failure-to-record-ethnicity-of-covid-19-victims-a-scandal-says-bma-chief ) and by a specialist medical group in Wales (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-52347003) to find ways to safeguard NHS staff from BME backgrounds who may be at risk due to a number of recognised (genetic, socio-economic, as well as systemic intersecting oppression) and perhaps unknown reasons; and lastly 7. Current call for an Independent Public Inquiry into the impact of COVID19 on people from BME backgrounds (https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/bame-communities-and-the-disproportionate-incidence-of-covid-19?share=c1c370db-dc62-460e-a89c-e3576037c4e9&source=rawlink&utm_source=rawlink). The inclusion of an ethnicity category on death certificates such like that which is in place in Scotland is required urgently in Wales and England. Importantly, this change should be a mandatory undertaking and considered a care quality and safeguarding requirement. In keeping with the lessons to be drawn from an analysis of the collecting of ethnicity data on death certificates recently conducted in Scotland ( https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/files//statistics/vital-events/ethnicity-of-deceased/ethnicity-deceased-report.pdf ), the introduction of an enhanced death registration process will need to be underpinned by training, incentives and ongoing monitoring. In the future we must be in a position to be able to identity and meaningful use existing national data collections to address health and social inequalities impacting on the lives of people from BME backgrounds. Securing a change in death certification is one important action. Keeping in mind all of those who have sadly died, all those affected by this crisis, and all those campaigning for change in across the UK, we urge all members of the public to sign this petition. There is no geographical restriction on who can sign a petition. About us: The ‘We Are One’ Collective: Under the slogan of ‘Pulling together to protect our families, our elders and our futures,’ we are a group of anti-racism activists, concerned citizens, and academics who came together in 2018 to address the Windrush Scandal and its impact on Wales’ Caribbean Commonwealth Elders. Our connections spread across Wales and beyond.

In the last 25 years the UK has lost 75% of flying insects and the vast majority of wildflower meadows. Rewilding areas provides habitat and food for insects, pollinators and local wildlife, and offers areas for families and children to learn more about wildflowers and wildlife. Just 8 Dandelion flowers provide enough nectar for 15,000 bee visits a day. https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/about-us/news/no-mow-may-how-to-get-ten-times-more-bees-on-your-lockdown-lawn Even small wild areas support declining insect populations. Rewilding also contributes to reaching our zero carbon goals, by taking harmful carbon dioxide from the air and storing it underground. This is a financially prudent environmental move as well, as rewilding saves money on expensive council-funded maintenance costs. Campaign backed by Worthing Climate Action Network and Extinction Rebellion Worthing There is now an update and good news on the area known as Robert's Marine: 'Plan for this space is to let areas of the grass grow long and create a grass maze within it. Have the patch of wild flowers and then some areas of cut grass still because we get quite a few people exercising on that space, dogs running around on it and people picnicking as well. We felt the mix enables all of that to still happen whilst adding a little more wild spaces for nature.'

Our leaders need to see a strong message that we want a zero tolerance approach to Covid19. I am an NHS GP who sees first hand the damage to patients, colleagues and our economy. I feel strongly we must work harder to protect the general public, healthcare workers and vulnerable patients, who remain extremely exposed. The infection is indiscriminate with unacceptable death rates in all ages and ethnic groups. Every life is precious and this level of risk is unacceptable for people in the modern world. Good protective equipment combined with isolating cases and contacts can keep control. We can ease lockdown with appropriate social distancing and home working depending on evidence of control being maintained. We would then avoid a second wave. There are other benefits from reductions in many other contagious diseases particularly in children. This buys time saving thousands of lives and allowing more business activity while we research treatments and vaccines. Control is successful in other countries that act with zero tolerance. Please sign this petition to show our leaders that we feel strongly that the best way we can protect everyone from this deadly infection is zero tolerance to Covid19!