Our walk today took us to the Covid Memorial Wall started by bereaved family and friends of Covid-19 victims and featuring 150,000 hand-painted red hearts – roughly one for everyone in Britain who has died so far. The wall is the work of the Bereaved Families for Justice who are calling for a statutory enquiry into the government’s handling of the pandemic and who have chosen this spot because it faces the Houses of Parliament and can be seen by any politician glancing out of the window in the hope of spotting impending signs of Spring . As such, the wall is, of course, a political statement. But when you see the bereaved crouching on the ground or standing on tip-toe on trestles, deep in concentration as they fill in the names of their lost loved ones, you realise this statement has taken on a role far more important than that.

People have come from all over the country to London, defying travel restrictions and carrying with them their flowers, hopes and memories. They gather at the wall, talk to one another, read the messages left by others and take comfort in their united grief.

Yes, there should be an enquiry but, more importantly, the wall should be preserved as a lasting memorial. The government has talked of monuments and statues but they already have something better than anything decided by oommittee or won in competition- a simple, spontaneous manifestation of the country’s anguish.