• ON Tuesday April 28, in the pouring rain, I stood across the road on Upper Street, with my equally soaked dog, as the huge front gates of the fire station in St Mary’s ward were opened and our dedicated firefighters assembled, dressed in their emergency response personal protective equipment PPE, to observe a minute’s silence for all those key workers who have died in service during this coronavirus pandemic.

Our thoughts are with their loved ones and families who now have to carry on their lives without them.

International Workers’ Memorial Day is when we remember all those who have lost their lives at work or from work-related injury or diseases.

We renew our efforts to organise collectively to prevent more deaths, injury and disease as a result of work.

In 2006 a beautiful, very moving, national memorial to building workers killed on sites was unveiled at Tower Hill by the then Labour Mayor of London Ken Livingstone and has since been an annual gathering place on April 28 to observe a period of silence and to hear from speakers.

JACKY CLARKE
Chair, St Marys ward Labour Party