Industrial reporter LABOUR MPs Diane Abbott and Richard Burgon joined trade unionists, academics and activists on Saturday to demand a “Covid-zero” approach to suppressing the pandemic. They spoke at the virtual launch of the Zero Covid Campaign, a group advocating tougher policies aimed at eliminating, as opposed to managing, coronavirus. Short, sharp lockdowns alongside efficient test, trace and isolate policies have seen many south-east Asian and Pacific Rim countries keep deaths and economic disruption to a minimum. Former shadow home secretary Ms Abbott said: “We’re seeing 1,000 people die every day. We’ve almost become numb to those figures, but they represent lives snuffed out.