Lord Zameer Choudhury, group chief executive of Bestway, has urged the government to extend the coronavirus life assurance scheme to all key workers, and specifically the BAME workers, not covered by the current scheme.
Speaking during a House of Lords debate on 4 June on the effect of COVID-19 on the UK economy, Lord Choudhury noted the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME) individuals, adding that the community is over-represented in sectors that the government has allowed to remain open such as food retail, healthcare and transport.
“I personally feel that these members of the BAME community are playing an essential role in keeping the country moving and are going above and beyond the call of duty in providing essential services to their local communities in these unprecedented times,” he said.
Pointing out that not all professions categorized as essential are included in the life assurance scheme, which covers only the staff who are performing vital frontline NHS or social care work, Lord Choudhury said the scheme will be well received if the government extends it to cover more key workers.
“The government has already categorised them as essential workers, it necessarily follows that the government must have considered including some, if not all, of these groups in the government’s own life assurance scheme,” he said.
The non-contributory scheme provides a sum of £60,000 in the event of a staff member dying due to COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
Replying to the debate, Treasury Minister Lord Theodore Agnew said the government will continue to review the support provided to key workers on the front line in relation to the life assurance scheme.
