The coronavirus pandemic has turned people’s lives upside down and we are now facing dire economic uncertainty.

We have seen the devastating impact here in Brent. In my constituency, the unemployment claimant count was 7,755 higher in June 2020 than in June 2019.

Nearly half of all workers in Brent Central were furloughed during the pandemic, which is the highest in the UK. And sadly, we know it will get worse.

All indications are we will be living with the fallout from Covid-19 for a long time. But we cannot go back to business as usual post-lockdown.

Through my constituency casework, I have identified fundamental problems for my constituents - lack of job security, inadequate sick pay, low wages, insufficient Universal Credit and much more. We need long-term solutions for these problems.

I believe that here in Brent we need to think about how we equip my constituents for the future. So we need a Real New Deal to rebalance our economy and give power back to people. And we need to recognise and reward the people who have kept the country going. I want it to be centred on five pillars – each addressing the problems I have encountered.

I want to see ambitious measures that value all workers, provide a real safety net, protect the workforce, increase flexibility and ensure equality and job security.

I will be calling for a Real New Deal from the government, which I will be setting out in more detail in the coming weeks, and I hope others will join me in this campaign.