The best memorial to those who have lost their lives to the Coronavirus pandemic would be a “collective determination” to end hunger, poverty and homelessness Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price has said.
Today (March 16th 2021) marks the first recorded death as a result of COVID-19 in Wales.
Speaking during First Minister’s Questions, the Plaid Cymru Leader said that Covid-19 has highlighted and further exacerbated existing health and social inequalities including “ill health, poor housing and the gaps in educational opportunity”.
Mr Price said that this should be a turning point in ensuring we do not go back to “how things were before” and reaffirmed his party’s commitment to paying care workers fairly with a guaranteed minimum wage of £10 an hour as a first step in creating a “positive legacy of this awful pandemic”.
The Plaid Cymru Leader urged First Minister Mark Drakeford to back the policy and to ensure all care workers are paid at least the Real Living Wage.
56% of care workers do not currently receive the Real Living Wage.
The Welsh Government announced it would create two new woodlands as “permanent living memorials” to all those who have died.
Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price MS said,
“COVID-19 has highlighted and further exacerbated existing health inequalities. Deep rooted inequalities such as ill health, poor housing and the gaps in educational opportunity has scarred too many people in Wales for far too long.
“The Government’s announcement of the creation of a living memorial to those that have lost their lives in the form of new woodland is very welcome and thoughtful.
“But an even greater memorial for us to resolve together to end child hunger and poverty, to end homelessness and poor housing and end poverty pay, beginning with key workers as a sign of our collective determination not to go back to how things were before.
“Plaid Cymru would commit to paying care workers fairly with a guaranteed minimum wage of £10 an hour – funding social care sufficiently so that all care workers are paid at least the Real Living Wage as an embodiment of the new Wales we should endeavour to create as a positive legacy of this awful pandemic.
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