Wigan MP: 'Government needs a lockdown exit strategy'

In a wide-ranging interview on The Andrew Marr Show on BBC on Sunday morning, Ms Nandy spoke of her concerns for Wigan workers on the front-line during coronavirus and her worries measures introduced to support businesses do not go far enough.

She also said the Government needs to be thinking now about a flexible plan to move forward once the currently-stringent measures on staying at home are in a position to be relaxed.

Ms Nandy said: "What we know from countries like South Korea is that in a public health crisis public confidence is everything.

"You have to be as open and transparent as possible so people understand why they are being asked to do the things they are and they can see some kind of light at the end of the tunnel.

"Right now what the Government ought to be doing is setting out very clear plans to get us out of this lockdown and levelling with the public about that so we can all prepare.

"This may change as the science changes and we see the progression of this awful virus."

Ms Nandy spoke of how difficult the current situation is for people in the borough and across the country, both from personal and financial perspectives.

She said: "People are finding lockdown really hard. A couple of weeks ago I went to a funeral and stood in the car park on my own while a grieving family watched through the window. These are hard things people are being asked to do.

"I have a lot of constituents in Wigan going into work and very worried about the implications of this for themselves and their families.

"The measures brought forward by [Chancellor of the Exchequer] Rishi Sunak were welcome but what is becoming apparent is a lot of people and businesses aren't covered and the schemes aren't working quickly or comprehensively enough."

Ms Nandy said Labour would play a constructive role in opposition but would also challenge the Government where it feels responses could be better.

She also told the programme that after the pandemic is over questions should be asked about the state of funding for public services and charities and whether designated key workers such as carers, transport employees and other roles have been valued highly enough.

She said: "We should never again be in a position where public services don't have the resilience they need to respond, where families are one step away from financial collapse and where workers are struggling to get the rights and protection they need."

Ms Nandy also called for parliament to begin work again "as soon as possible" so MPs can scrutinise the Government.