The Sunday Mirror campaign to reward NHS coronavirus workers with cash bonuses has been backed by 13 MPs and former Prime Minister Tony Blair.
MPs backing the campaign to reward frontline workers include former Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott MP and former Shadow Justice Secretary Richard Burgon MP. The petition is also joined by Green Party MP, and former leader, Caroline Lucas.
The Sunday Mirror states it is calling on Chancellor Rishi Sunak to introduce a special daily allowance to be paid to nurses, doctors, support staff and care workers who are risking their lives.
The Labour MP Zarah Sultana, the latest figure to join the paper’s campaign, said: “The public’s support for them has been amazing, but health workers need that to be matched by Government action.
“That’s why I’m proud to support the Sunday Mirror’s campaign to get frontline staff a cash bonus and I’ll keep fighting for our key workers to receive the pay rise they deserve.”
The initiative is based on tax-free allowances given to soldiers in war zones. The paper states that army personnel deployed in the most dangerous regions are entitled to a daily tax-free payment of £29.02 in addition to their wages for six months.
The former head of the Army General Lord Dannatt has given his support to the campaign, saying: “All the talk is about our heroic NHS and care workers on the front line, just as we talked about our brave men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“But the difference is we gave our soldiers an extra daily allowance to fight on our behalf, so why are we not doing the same on the NHS and care front line?”
The Sunday Mirror says the bonus would also recognise paramedics, radiographers, physiotherapists, porters, hospital cleaners and catering staff also on the frontline.
A Commons motion has been tabled by Labour’s Jon Trickett in support of the campaign.
More information about the petition can be found here.