Covid-19 has ruined my life this year..and the UK Government’s approach to tackling the situation hasn’t made it any easier.
Despite it now being December, there are still more moments than none where I find it unbelievable that the events of this year have happened / are still happening..of where we as a global society have found ourselves.
Firsthand — In some ways for me, it started when Covid-19 forced the UK into a national lockdown in mid-late March. Even then, though, it didn’t feel..as serious as it was. I can’t say for sure if that was down to how the media was portraying the pandemic, how the UK Government handled it (appallingly) or even just how it didn’t seem to fully effect my day-to-day, until my company’s offices were shut due to an employee contracting the virus. We were all told to work remotely and I remember thinking that maybe this would last a month, a few months but never as indefinite an amount of time as it currently feels.
Since March, almost everything textbook has happened in my personal life: My grandfather, living in a care home in the US, contracted Covid-19 and passed away on my birthday in May. With talks of redundancy looming over our heads since March, I eventually lost my job in late July. My anxiety and depression sky-rocketed through the roof to a point where I genuinely couldn’t separate reality from the fiction my mind was creating in an elaborate attempt to self-sabotage myself. My partner and I fought and fought, out of frustration over the whole situation even though most of it was beyond our personal control. I’ve applied for jobs left, right and centre, looking at industries and roles that I knew I wouldn’t necessarily be qualified for, in an effort to just try and apply where I could — and I did; I have. I still haven’t found one.
Apart from not contracting Covid-19 myself, I would say it’s still been fairly difficult. And that’s quite possibly the only silver lining.
Of course I know I’m not alone in this — Even those who haven’t lost loved ones, who still have their jobs, who haven’t contracted the virus, or who’s lives more or less have stayed ‘the same’ during this time have experienced the unwavering discourse that all of this brings — Even if they’re viewing it from a close distance. I know that almost 2 million people in the UK right now are unemployed as a result of this pandemic and are also looking for work — The majority of which, like me, are claiming Universal Credit and/or Jobseeker’s Allowance but also, like me, are finding it impossible to live off of that allowance month to month and wondering if in the next month, they’ll be making difficult calls to their landlord, mortgage company, credit card/loan companies, or utility bill companies that they won’t be able to meet the next month’s costs. That they may potentially be without food on their tables, with limited hot water/heating due to the cost, or worse — Face becoming homeless. This is the reality so many of us face right now.
I understand that to lead a national government and make important decisions in the midst of a global health pandemic is not an easy job. Could I do it? I’m not sure. But do I think there could be so much more done? Abso-f*****’-lutely. I understand that the policies should work for the majority and not the few — But also, ideally, the number one priority of a government on top of tackling this virus and maintaining some sort of economy in the midst of it all should be to protect all of its citizens from poverty and hardship..and I’m sorry, but I don’t see enough of this being done. As a personal example, my Universal Credit this next month is calculated as £208. I will then receive approx. 2 payments of Jobseeker’s Allowance, which will calculate to roughly £148.70 each. That means, for the month of December, my total benefit earnings will be approx. £505.40. For someone who lives in zone 3 London, who’s partner doesn’t earn a very high wage (certainly not enough to cover the cost for us both) and who’s rent alone comes in at over £1,100 per month, this is incredibly concerning as it puts both of us at risk of not being able to pay our rent on time, not being able to afford paying our bills on top of that and let’s not forget personal expenses like groceries, toiletries or even silly things like my mobile phone. You could argue that that’s our choice to live where we live and to have the expenses we do, and you’re right — But also, you should know that prior to me losing my job, we were in a comfortable place to afford these things, as should most people be when choosing where they live and the expenses they incur. And yes, for sure — I realise there are a multitude of people who have it much worse than I do. But when your citizens can barely afford their household expenses on a monthly basis — Surely then, you must know something is wrong with the systems you have in place and you should be doing more. ESPECIALLY in the midst of a global health pandemic that you as the government for one of those countries can barely seem to control.
Despite all of this — I still try to remain hopeful of the new year. Maybe the vaccines will save us. Maybe by some miracle, the economy will start to do better and more jobs will be available to those of us who need them, so we can afford to live again without the threat of poverty constantly looming over our heads. What I do know is, as with other momentous occasions throughout history, similar to Wartime — As much as we’d love for this year to be lobotomised from our minds, we won’t forget 2020 within our lifetimes, at the very least.
