Luciana Berger concern over ‘upsetting’ Golders Green panic buying incident

Luciana Berger hit out panic buyers during the coronavirus pandemic, urging people to be kinder to the elderly.

The ex-Labour MP and Lib Dem candidate who lost her seat in December, took to Twitter about a “very upsetting incident” on Saturday.

She said on Twitter a “man in Golders Green Sainsbury’s wouldn’t give an elderly lady just 1 of a number of (the last) packets of dry pasta he had grabbed. He said no when she asked him politely. Very upsetting. We need a national kindness effort to look out for the elderly, infirm & vulnerable #BeKind”.

Her tweet to her almost 125 thousand followers was retweeted more than 2,000 times.

Earlier this week, concerns were raised by kosher butchers about Pesach meat crisis amid the coronavirus outbreak. Read more here.

Berger quit the Labour Party in February 2019 over antisemitism before joining Change UK and eventually the the Liberal Democrats. She stood unsuccessfully against Conservative incumbent Mike Freer in the recent General Election.

She asked Alok Sharma, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what his department is  doing “to minimise panic buying and ensure that we don’t see shortages of essentials and foodstuffs? The shelves of my local Sainsbury’s are half empty.”

Berger continued: “Staff tell me a number of items they would expect didn’t come in the delivery this morning, and they don’t think there’s any loo roll left. My neighbours waited over a week for a home delivery slot from a different supermarket and items from their order were cancelled (including loo roll). Friends across Merseyside report the same. Really worried for the elderly, geographically isolated, vulnerable and infirm. #coronavirus“.

This comes after the British Retail Consortium members sent a joint letter to consumers urging responsibility and advising against panic buying, which was endorsed by Environment Secretary, George Eustice.

On Sunday, it was announced that elderly people may be asked to self-isolate for up to four months, as the UK escalates its fight.