Andy Burnham has urged the government to ‘go slow and go national’ in their approach to lifting national restrictions in England.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson will outline the government’s roadmap to exit lockdown on Monday (February 22), with England operating under tight COVID restrictions for almost all of 2021 so far.
Among the first sectors expected to reopen is education – with the PM already touting March 8 as a potential return date for school pupils. It is widely expected that non-essential retailers will open before gyms and the hospitality sector, with the return of crowds to sports venues and nightclubs much further down the list.
UK COVID rates have plummeted from a 7-day moving average of over 59,000 to less than 13,000 in the space of a month.
However, cases in Greater Manchester are falling much slower than in other areas.
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All ten boroughs have higher rates than the national average (133.2 cases per 100,000 people), with Tameside even recording a slight increase in the week to February 14.
And the region’s mayor is now warning the government to “move at the pace of the slowest” areas in order to avoid a stop-start approach to reopening the economy like in 2020.
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Speaking on BBC Radio 4 on Friday (February 19) morning, Burnham stated: “I would say [to the government] go carefully and go nationally – don’t return to tiers.
“Do not repeat the mistakes of 2020, where the national lockdown was lifted too early, certainly for parts of the north where the case rates were much higher.
“This year, we should proceed on a much more cautious basis – as I’m pleased to hear the Prime Minister saying himself – and that means looking at the places where case rates are highest before you take decisions to lift national lockdown.”
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Image: David Dixon via Geograph
Burnham said that hurrying out of lockdown in 2020 may have attributed to the rapid reintroduction of measures in Manchester – which have been in place in one form or another since July.
He stated: “When we lifted national lockdown last year, case rates in the north were much higher than they were in London, and I think that explains why parts of the north including Greater Manchester went back under restrictions.
“I don’t think the old tiers worked when we had the original strains. Now we have new strains, they simply would not be able to withstand the level at which these new strains can spread.”
The PM said he would be focusing on ‘data, not dates’ when creating the lockdown exit plan, saying the relaxation of measures would be performed in stages.
Johnson said the exit route would be “cautious and prudent”, designed in “such a way to be irreversible.”
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Around 16 million people in the country have now received their COVID-19 vaccination.
According to chairman of the UK Vaccines Taskforce Dr Clive Dix, the pace of the current rollout could see every adult receive their jab before September.
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Trams are officially coming to Stockport as part of £2.5bn investment package
Emily Sergeant
It’s official… Stockport is finally getting trams.
It’s been a long time coming, so long, in fact, that rumours first began swirling all the way back in July 2022 when then Prime Minister Boris Johnson hinted at in PMQs, all before Mayor Andy Burnham insisted in October 2023 that he had ‘big ambitions’ to deliver the project once and for all, but now it’s finally been confirmed.
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has today revealed that Stockport will be connected to the Metrolink tram network thanks to a £2.5 billion funding boost from the Government.
At this moment in time, Stockport is one of only a few boroughs in the region that’s not currently connected up to the expansive Metrolink network, but all of that is set to change very soon, as Greater Manchester is beginning the construction of the town’s very-first tram line.
It will help deliver:
🐝 Eight rail lines and 64 stations into the capped system by 2028
🐝 A new tram line to Stockport
🐝 A new tram-train service connecting Bury, Heywood, Rochdale and Oldham
While the intention for trams to eventually travel to and from the town has been known for quite some time now, there hasn’t been much talk of timelines or when this would actually become a reality.
For now, it seems there’s still no timelines as such, but at least there’s confirmation.
The confirmation that trams will be coming to Stockport forms part of a lineup of exciting transport announcements this week, all of which Andy Burnham has called a ‘game-changing moment’ that will ‘underpin Greater Manchester’s green growth’ for years to come.
Trams are officially coming to Stockport as part of a £2.5 billion investment package / Credit: TfGM
Other announcements include the fact that Greater Manchester‘s Bee Network is to become a fully-electric, zero-emission public transport system by 2030, local rail lines will be brought into the Bee Network before the end of the decade, fully joining up bike, bus, tram, and train travel for the first time outside London, and the introduction of new electric buses, tram lines, tram stops, and transport interchanges.
North Manchester, Bury, and Oldham are the areas set to receive new Metrolink stops to support delivery of thousands of new homes, and Oldham, Rochdale, Heywood, and Bury will all be connected to each other via the Bee Network.
“Building on our strong track record, we can now move at pace to deliver the next phase of the Bee Network – creating the UK’s first fully electric, zero emission integrated public transport system by 2030,” commented Mayor Andy Burnham as the funding package was announced this week.
The Bee Network become a fully-electric, zero-emission public transport system by 2030 / Credit: TfGM
“With a pipeline of major transport projects better connecting our towns and cities, and local rail lines brought into the Bee Network, our communities will be the first outside London to be served by fully joined-up bike, bus, tram, and train travel.
“Greater Manchester has had a decade of growth faster than the UK average, and this funding can be the key to unlocking even more growth in the decade to come.
“It’s a major boost for our own plans to deliver £10bn of investment over the next 10 years, build thousands of new homes, create skilled jobs, and open up new opportunities right across our city-region.”
Featured Image – TfGM
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Police still searching for answers six months after remains of baby girl found in Little Hulton park
Emily Sergeant
Six months on after the remains of a baby girl were found in a park in Little Hulton, police are still searching for answers.
It was on 20 November 2024 that Greater Manchester Police (GMP) received a call from a member of the public reporting the discovery of what appeared to be human remains in a park in the Little Hulton area of Salford – but it was only when officers and detectives attended the scene that they determinted the remains to be that of a baby girl.
At the time, police referred to the baby simply as ‘Baby A’, but it’s now be confirmed that they chose to name her Ava.
Since that day, a dedicated team from GMP’s Major Incident Team has worked ‘tirelessly’ to uncover the truth about who Baby Ava was and what led to her being left alone.
Detectives have followed up on hundreds of public tips, conducted thousands of hours of house-to-house enquiries, reviewed extensive CCTV footage, and collaborated with police forces and agencies across the country in pursuit of identifying who baby Ava was and securing justice for her… but as of yet, there are no answers.
Police are still searching for answers six months after the remains of a baby girl found in a Little Hulton park / Credit: Google Maps
Information from the public also led police to speak with potential witnesses nationwide, and time was also spent trawling the national missing person database, focusing on cases involving females who were potentially pregnant and reported missing, yet these were unsuccessful.
To this day, police continue to work closely with a range of experts.
Currently, a botanist is helping detectives determine how long Ava may have been at the discovery site, and work is continuing with an anthropologist, archaeologist, and specialists in dental and bone analysis to establish Ava’s age and ethnicity.
As investigations continue at a rapid pace, police have reissued their appeal to the public for information.
Police have since named the baby Ava as their search for answers continues / Credit: GMP
“We will never forget Baby Ava, and despite the challenges in the investigation, we’re committed to uncovering the truth,” commented Detective Chief Inspector Charlotte Whalley, from GMP’s Major Incident Team. “We are more determined than ever to find who Ava is, who her parents are, and all of the possible scenarios and circumstances which have led Ava to being separated from them.
“I know how heartbreaking this case has been for the communities of Greater Manchester and beyond. The support and compassion we’ve received has been unwavering, and we share the sadness felt for Ava as we continue our search for answers so that we can lay her to rest.
“If you are baby Ava’s mum, please know that you are not alone. You can contact us directly or ask someone you trust to reach out on your behalf. We want to help you.”
Anyone with any information that may be of assistance is asked to contact police on 101, quoting log 1319 of 20/11/24, or by heading to the Major Incident Public Portal here.
The Manc -
19th February 2021 
