Pubs and bars; betting shops, casinos and adult gaming centres and gyms will be ordered to close when the Prime Minister reveals his measures today on new Covid-19 lockdown restrictions for Southport, Formby, Sefton and the rest of the Liverpool City Region.
A statement has been released from Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region Steve Rotheram, Sefton Council Leader Cllr Ian Maher and other council leaders in the Merseyside region setting out some of the measures which they claim have been agreed with Ministers ahead of today’s announcement.
Boris Johnson is set to hold a Cobra meeting this morning ahead of revealing the news in the House of Commons.
He is expected to set out the restrictions contained with a new three tier system with Sefton and the Liverpool City Region expected to be under the most severe rules as Covid-19 figures continue to rise locally, with concerns over rising hospital numbers.
The latest figures were revealed last night and show that Sefton has risen from ninth to eighth highest in England for Coronavirus cases, with a rise from 870 cases to 1,157 cases, with a new rate of 418.6 per 100,000.
West Lancashire, which includes places such as Banks, Halsall, Scarisbrick and Hesketh Bank, has entered the top 10 for the first time with an increase from 249 to 455 new cases.
The figures, in the week up to October 8, are below. The most recent week’s figures are on the left with cases per 100,000 followed by the number of new cases in brackets. The previous week’s figures are on the right.
1 – Nottingham 830.0 (2763), 314.5 (1047)
2 – Knowsley 669.5 (1010), 485.9 (733)
3 – Liverpool 598.5 (2981), 504.4 (2512)
4 – Newcastle upon Tyne 509.5 (1543), 420.1 (1272)
5 – Burnley 503.8 (448), 445.3 (396)
6 – Manchester 477.7 (2641), 530.5 (2933)
7 – Sheffield 439.3 (2569), 263.0 (1538)
8 – Sefton 418.6 (1157), 314.7 (870)
9 – West Lancashire 398.1 (455), 217.8 (249)
10 – St Helens 387.6 (700), 323.4 (584)
11 – Halton 381.7 (494), 309.1 (400)
In their statement, the Liverpool City Region council leaders said: “In response to the high and rising Covid-19 cases in the City Region, we have been working collectively throughout the whole weekend to negotiate a package of support from the Government in the best interests of the people of the Liverpool City Region.
“Following further conversations with the Government today, we are writing to set out the current position between the Government and the LCR.
“Together we agree and share the grave concerns with regard to the increasing pressure on our hospitals and remain absolutely committed to working with the Government to drive down the spread of the Coronavirus and the number of Covid-19 cases.
“We have made it clear that while our priority is the health and wellbeing of our residents, the wellbeing of our economy is also a top priority. We made it clear we do not feel that the Furlough scheme announced recently is adequate and that businesses in the Region especially those in the hospitality sector and those serving it will be damaged and many will suffer long term damage or close for good.
“We also challenged the Government on further issues, like Track & Trace, enforcement and funding for the City and Local Authorities to deal with the funding crisis and manage our budgets this year and next year.
“The Government has decided that the following further measures and closures will apply to the Liverpool City Region. Pubs and bars; Betting Shops, Casinos and Adult Gaming Centres and Gyms will close.
“These measures they feel will help stop the spread of Covid 19, reduce the levels of infection and relieve pressure on our Hospitals and NHS.
“We acknowledge the Governments’ offer on new local arrangements and funding support for Enforcement and for Test, Trace and Isolate, specifically:
- An enforcement package, with laws, not just guidance and advice, and funding and resources to enforce restrictions where necessary.
- An effective local Track, Trace and Isolate package with the funding to support it, cooperation on data, local control and the guaranteed supplies and resources required.
“We also welcome the opportunity to engage logistics and capacity support from the Armed Forces, working alongside our own Local Authority staff and Public Health officials.
“These measures will be supported by a specific package of financial support for our City Region to cover a six-month period and not dependent upon the Tier position of our City Region.”
“We remain committed to dialogue with the Government to achieve a mutually agreeable solution.
“We would also like at this point to thank our officers, who have been working closely with us throughout the weekend, for their ongoing support.”
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