Google honours Jo Cox on her birthday with fundraising link

Jo Cox, pictured in her home constituency of Batley and Spen in West Yorkshire. Picture: Contributed

Below the Google UK search box is a simple message reading: ‘In remembrance of Jo Cox MP’.

Clicking on the text brings up a message from Google which says: “Today, on what what would have been her birthday, we’d like to honour and remember Jo Cox MP, who dedicated her life to the belief that there is more that unites us than divides us.

“Help honour Jo by making a donation to her memorial fund: https://www.gofundme.com/jocox.”

The fundraising page, which aims to raise money for three charities - The Royal Voluntary Service, the White Helmets and HOPE not Hate - had passed the £1 million mark just three days after friends of Mrs Cox had set up the page following her death.

More than 36,000 people have donated money that will be split up between the three organisations,.

An update from Mrs Cox’s friends - Nick Grono, Tim Dixon, Mabel van Oranje and Gemma Mortensen - on the fundraising page posted today reads: “We are deeply moved by everyone’s extraordinary generosity. More than 36,000 people around the world have donated to Jo Cox’s Fund, and over £1.2 million has been raised.

“It’s clear Jo’s death has touched so many people so deeply, in ways we could never have imagined.

“Many people have asked us what happens next. In the spirit of Jo and on what would have been her 42nd birthday today, we want to lift our ambitions. We want to move ahead and establish a foundation to continue advancing the causes closest to Jo’s heart and to help give her a lasting legacy.

“All donations received so far, and up to our current target of £1.5 million, will be given to the three causes initially chosen by Jo’s family and listed here (The Royal Voluntary Service, The White Helmets and HOPE not hate).

“If we can raise beyond that target, we will distribute those additional funds to support more causes that Jo believed in and fought for, via the foundation.

“These causes will be chosen and announced by Jo’s family in line with Jo’s passions (and might for example include women’s empowerment, refugee support and fighting poverty). We will share more information about plans for the foundation as they take shape.

“Thanks again for your extraordinary support.”

The Royal Voluntary Service is aimed at supporting volunteers helping to combat loneliness in Mrs Cox’s constituency of Batley and Spen in West Yorkshire, while HOPE not hate is an organisation seeking to challenge and defeat the politics of hate and extremism in local communities throughout the UK.

The White Helmets is a group of volunteer search and rescue workers in Syria, who have rescued more than 51,000 people.