As an older single dad (59) I am at significant risk if I contract Covid 19. I am my son's only living relative and as such if I contract the virus and either become very ill due to my age or even worse die, my son will be placed into care. I currently have 10 weeks worth of FSM vouchers I have been unable to redeem as the only way to do so is to visit the store, risking contamination and the threat of my son being placed in care as a consequence. I have a really low income and I feel it is grossly unfair that my son should go without the £15 p/w towards buying food because Morrison's won't offer this service online.

The government wishes to claw back the amount of £300 billion it has been forced to spend on combatting the consequences of the COVID-19 crisis. The OAP's have worked hard during their lives to become eligible for the state-pension,and any necessary future increases in their state-pensions should not be withheld from them. The state needs to recoup the £300 billion spent on combatting the pandemic by other means,and not by removing necessary living funds from OAP's. This governmental proposal will affect myself and all other state pensioners. This could be done by saving on unnecessary government projects,such as HS2 rail & unnecessary and expensive armaments procurement.

Almost a fifth of UK homes with children are going hungry in lockdown. Families who usually get free schools have been promised government help while schools are closed but the reality is a litany of missed payments and problems with vouchers. It’s not good enough. As a single parent who uses the voucher scheme I have personally experienced the issues with the food voucher system. Multiple times I've been waiting for sometimes an hour or more just for the voucher website to crash. We only received the first voucher 5 weeks into lockdown, that's 5 weeks of struggling to give my child decent food. My child is just one of 1.3million who rely on these vouchers and it's just not fair. With the pandemic, it's harder to get out and shop, harder to get to a food bank if you need to, so these vouchers are a lifeline for families that need them. Experts like the Food Foundation are calling out the government for not doing enough. Children deserve to have food on the table. Together we can make sure no child goes hungry during this crisis.

The Government has chosen to ‘focus on new claimants’ by providing an extra £20 a week for people claiming Universal Credit. By doing this, they are discriminating against millions of disabled people on other out of work disability benefits. Disabled people are experiencing additional costs and risks as a result of COVID-19, but are without the extra support they need to manage these. As a result, people are having to choose between heating their home, or paying for a taxi to go and collect their medication because public transport is too unsafe. They are having to put themselves at risk by going to their local shop because they can't afford the minimum spend needed to get a free food delivery. Disabled people have been expected to survive on inadequate benefit levels for years. It is unacceptable that now, in a time of national crisis they are being left behind. The Government have, by increasing the rate for some, admitted that people need more financial support. They must now provide a better safety net for everyone. MP's and over 100 disability organisations have already called on the Government to provide parity between the support given to new benefit claimants, and the millions of people who were already on disability benefits. Will you sign the petition to ensure people aren't pushed into debt? Will you sign to ensure people's safety? Don't leave disabled people behind.

Hundreds of thousands of people - who have lost their jobs or had their hours reduced due to Coronavirus - are now being forced to claim Universal Credit in order to feed their families and keep a roof over their head. But instead of being able to get the help they need immediately, they are forced to wait for 5 weeks before they can get any money, or take out a loan called an “advanced payment” to tide them over. It means families will have to choose between going into debt and having smaller benefits payments in the coming months, or waiting over a month for money they need to pay for food, bills and rent. It doesn’t have to be like this. In this time of national crisis, the government could choose to end the 5 week wait by making the “advance payment” for Universal Credit a grant not a loan. This would mean families get the money they need straight away, and their full universal credit payment in the following months. MPs and experts are calling on them to do exactly this. Huge public pressure could be enough to push them to do the right thing. Will you sign the petition so that people get the money they need, when they need it, without being pushed into debt?

Dominic Raab In these troubled times we need to be at home for the sake of our families and their peace of mind .

In this worrying time with everyone in financial turmoil due to social distancing and isolation the exemption of having to pay council tax across the UK should be enforced to help everyone

Millions of us are currently self-isolating at home. But homeless people can’t do that. And with shelters closing up because they’re simply not safe - and other support like food banks stretched to breaking point - there’s simply nowhere for them to go. But there’s a simple solution. Right now, as so many travelers have cancelled their holiday plans, hotels across the country are sitting empty. They’re a perfect place for homeless people to stay during this unprecedented crisis. If the government paid some hotels to provide shelter to homeless people it would also help these businesses weather the storm - meaning they can continue paying their hard-working staff. Less than 3% of the UK’s hotel rooms would be needed - but it could save countless lives.

Poor families and those losing jobs and sliding into debt need to eat! The government can provide a safety net for them from their reserves being called upon for this emergency.

* 2.73 million people are completely offline due to low income * 14.2 million people are limited users because they cannot afford access on a regular basis (source: Digital Nation 2019 - Good Things Foundation) We are hearing stories of the implications for low income families not being able to get online. Stories include people struggling with access to welfare claims and registrations, school learning and being able to connect with family, friends and relatives. See: www.operationwifi.co.uk

The effects of the new economic breakdown are already being felt throughout the country, and students are not exempt from it. As businesses and workplaces are getting shut down because of the COVID-19 pandemic, several students will no longer be able to pay the rents for their stay at the University. Likewise, on behalf of several of my University colleagues, I am asking you to pass a law for Universities to stop charging students living on their campuses for rent until the pandemic crisis ends. There is another petition that demands landlords off campus to stop charging for rent, so this petition is directed at Universities' on-campus accommodation policies. I firmly believe that all categories of society members need help in these difficult times, and that the United Kingdom should follow the example of other countries; particularly the one of France, where all accommodation rents are to be suspended during the crisis. As a Biomedical Science student in his final undergraduate year, I am significantly concerned about the future number of cases throughout the country, and several people will very likely require not just treatment, but also a great amount of psychological and emotional support, as people of all ages have already been exposed to the pathogen. Hence, I kindly ask you for the appropriate support so that students will not be exposed to financial hardships and suffer even more, besides their profound anxiety and uncertainty, not just about the lives of their loved ones, but about their lives as well. Moreover, I'm asking you to pressurize all UK Universities with accommodation campuses to permit students with existing health conditions to break their contracts, as there are many of them who are currently sharing flats with as many as 15 other colleagues. They need to be isolated during the crisis, so that their lives will not be put at risk.

We have to help support people through these challenging times and help them cope with the economic effects of not bringing home an income. What’s needed is some form of Universal Basic Uncome (UBI). Universal Income is a modest basic payment to all citizens - there’s more information here https://www.wired.co.uk/article/universal-basic-income-explained Some places are starting to get wise to this. Japan is now preparing to give parents $80/day to stay home with their children, and Hong Kong is setting up a one-time $1,200 stimulus for its adult citizens to help weather the difficulty and keep the economy running. Australia, too, is planning to start putting cash in its citizens’ hands. In the USA Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, too, is now championing UBI as part of the solution. This need not be just a temporary fix. When this virus passes into history, a continued UBI would continue to help us deal with our many other daily disasters, both individual and communal, from hurricanes to layoffs to heartbreaks. Shit happens, and it never stops happening, and we can always face it better when we have guaranteed security in the form of a steady income. The coronavirus just might test our society beyond anything we’ve seen in decades. Will we pass this test? It will certainly be painful, but can we use the opportunity of this shared catastrophe to come together, beat back the worst of its potential consequences, and emerge stronger? Maybe it takes a pandemic to realize just how important it is for people to never have to wait for the government to rescue them before they can start taking action for themselves, before they can feel protected. Maybe it takes a national crisis to see how important it is to strengthen every link in the great chain that is our nation. If there can be a silver lining to this particular disaster, I really hope that’s it.