Roger Casale
21st March 2020Why democracy still matters
Dear Supporters,
I hope this email finds you safe and well and that your friends and family are all safe and well.
As well as being an unprecedented health emergency and a massive shock to the economy, the coronavirus crisis also puts a strain on our democracy.
The delayed and so far still inadequate response to the crisis by the UK government will cost lives.
When the crisis does come to an end (and we believe that this will take much longer than "12 weeks") life will not be able to go on as before.
One of the key concerns that we have is that civil society organisations like ours which campaign for the rights of citizens will be weakened,.
But this is a time when citizens need their voices heard more clearly.
London and local elections have been postponed by one year, but will EU citizens still be allowed to vote in those elections?
The Electoral Commission has reported on the scandalous denial of a vote in last year's European elections to 1.7m million eligible voters - but will there still be an appetite to call for a public inquiry into what went wrong?
Can the energy behind our campaign for EU citizens to be given the vote in general elections be sustained?
The answer to these and other questions will also depends on you.
Your support will allow us to continue our campaign now and in the future.
That's why I am writing to you again today, to invite you to join New Europeans as a member if you have not already done so:
If you would prefer to make another one off donation, then please use his link to chip in to the campaign.
Our staff and volunteers are all working from home now as the government has requested.
But our commitment to find out what happened last year when so many were denied my vote is undiminished and we continue to work on the campaign.
As an organisation, we will be much more resilient if you, our supporters, continue to support us at this time.
We count on you in this moment of crisis to show your solidarity once again with our campaign and with our team by chipping in what you can to our fighting fund and/or by joining New Europeans as a member.
Please stay safe, and also please remember that our greatest strength comes by standing together - we ask you to stand with us now.
With kind regards.
Roger Casale
CEO& Sec.General, New Europeans