Nayana McGee
Amid the grief and mourning for our late Queen, Britain seemed to forget that life, does indeed, go on.
On the day of her coronation in 1953, the Queen pledged her life to the service of her people. So why, on the day that an estimated 50 per cent of the population came together to watch her funeral, was this promise all but forgotten?
Monday 19th September was declared a public holiday, to give the people of the UK an opportunity to pay their respects to our late Queen. But struggling Britons seemed to be considered an afterthought when the UK decided to close down almost entirely for her majesty’s funeral. Foodbanks and supermarkets closed, hospital appointments and surgeries were cancelled, and people all across the UK were told they couldn’t go to work. A small price to pay, some might argue, to witness an irreplaceable moment in history. Others, however, struggled to cover the cost.
Closing of Food Banks
It’s almost breathtaking to imagine that in a society like ours, millions of people go to sleep every night without having had a decent meal. It’s even more perplexing to imagine that this was actually expected of people on the day of the Queen’s funeral. All so that those who wanted to, could watch it.
“Food banks are a necessity for the people of the UK.”
Recent data from The Trussell Trust revealed that 2.1million emergency food parcels were given to people in crisis in the last year. It raises the question: did all of these people go without food that night? With 2.7 million households experiencing food insecurity in 2018, it is clear that food banks are a necessity for the people of the UK. So why on earth were they asked to go without?
Cancelling Medical Appointments
“Patients have been left feeling frustrated and uncertain about their health.”
“It’s only for a day!” the ignorant will argue. But for many, the repercussions of one day off have already spiralled into months of uncertainty. Thousands of patients across the UK have had their hospital and GP appointments cancelled over the past week due to the public holiday, many including surgeries for hip and knee replacements, eye surgeries, maternity checks and even some cancer treatments.
Some of these operations and appointments would have provided patients with priceless reassurance and a sense of security.
Maternity check-ups would have reassured a first-time mother that her baby was healthy. A fifteen-minute appointment could have assured a recovering cancer patient that their cancer isn’t coming back, or provided much-needed pain medication for a patient with a chronic illness.
Instead, patients have been left feeling frustrated and uncertain about their health at a time when already 6.8 million people are going without hospital treatment, biding their time on a waiting list.
Cost of Living
“The cost-of-living crisis doesn’t take a day off.”
Let us not forget that even on a bank holiday, the cost-of-living crisis doesn’t take a day off. Yes, those working salaried positions, and earning within a certain income tax bracket may be financially stable enough not to worry about an abrupt day off work, but what about the self-employed? What about those working zero-hour contracts who lost a day of pay or holiday allowance?
Over 80 per cent of UK adults reported an increase in their cost of living in March, with many revealing that they couldn’t afford unexpected expenses. Today’s economy is crippling people financially, even without unforeseen circumstances like the Queen’s death leaving them at an even bigger loss. So why is so much being expected from those who have so little? All for the sake of an ancient, excessive tradition insisted upon by people who are stuck in the past.
“while the privileged were laying their flowers and bowing their heads, the real sacrifice came from those who had very little to give in the first place”
Royalists will cry “have some respect!”. But respect isn’t the issue here. Imagine, you are a mother of four who couldn’t feed her family that night because her local foodbank was closed. Or the man who has waited months already to receive a surgery date, only for it to be cancelled last minute with no indication to reschedule.
Think of the thousands of people who have been asked to put their health and their quality of life on hold for the sake of a bank holiday. They are the people that deserve some respect. While the privileged were laying their flowers and bowing their heads, the real sacrifice came from those who had very little to give in the first place.
Featured image courtesy of Ehimetalor Akhere Unuabona on Unsplash. Image license found here.
