MIKE HILL: We cannot be an island alone as this year has taught us

Middleton Grange Shopping Centre organises a Giving Tree every year in order to support local charities in Hartlepool but, because of COVID, the campaign had to move online. Instead of the 1,500 gifts hoped for over 100,000 gifts have been donated. Well done to Mark Rycroft and the team.

Of course Hartlepool heroes are everywhere and far too many to mention in this column but, in the week ahead of the annual commemoration of the Bombardment of the Hartlepools on December 16th 1914, special mention must go to 8 year old Harry Fletcher who also made the news for making his own poppies to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day and raised over £1000 for the Poppy Appeal. Another proud achievement from one of our own, made more poignant by the fact that the casualties of the bombardment included children around his age.

So, given the nature and spirit of Hartlepool folk, I’m not surprised to have learnt that the COVID vaccine trials carried out at our hospital were practically oversubscribed and we have done our bit in the run up to the major announcement of the week; the beginning of the world’s first mass COVID vaccination programme. The significance of this as a public health exercise to inoculate the entire population is gargantuan. It will take many months to complete as a task, but the prospect of another year come March 2021 of this nightmare continuing is unpalatable. We must continue to pull together in the meantime and stay safe.

Finally, it’s with relief that we heard on Tuesday that the Government is dropping much of their controversial and illegal Internal Market Bill. For Brexit to achieve anything we need a good deal with our partners in Europe. Britain cannot be an island alone; if 2020 has taught us anything, it’s the value of cooperation and partnership”.