The UK government’s official legislation to legally enforce the new lockdown restrictions across Greater Manchester and other parts of Northern England comes into force today.
It comes over five days after Health Secretary Matt Hancock made the sudden announcement on the evening of Thursday 30th July that people in certain areas of Northern England – crucially including all 10 boroughs of Greater Manchester – would no long be permitted to congregate privately with others outside their household or support bubble.
This is due to a rise in coronavirus (COVID-19) cases across these regions.
It was confirmed that “the police will be able to take action against those that break these rules, including asking people to disperse and issuing fixed penalty notices”.
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These fixed penalty notices will start at £100 (halving to £50 if paid in the first 14 days) and will double for subsequent offences, meaning that the fines could rise to a total of £3,200 in the the case of the sixth and subsequent fixed penalty notices.
What exactly would see you handed a £100 fine in Greater Manchester under this new legislation though?
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According to the new guidance and legislation, the government has stated that in order to help prevent the spread of coronavirus, anyone who lives in Greater Manchester “should follow these rules when meeting people who you do not live with”.
You should not:
“Meet people you do not live with inside a private home or garden, except where you have formed a support bubble (or for other limited exemptions to be specified in law).
Visit someone else’s home or garden even if they live outside of the affected areas.
Socialise with people you do not live with in other indoor public venues – such as pubs, restaurants, cafes, shops, places of worship, community centres, leisure and entertainment venues, or visitor attractions. You may attend these venues with people you live with (or are in a support bubble with), but should avoid interaction with others. If you run such a business, you should take steps to ensure people do not interact with people they do not live with, in line with COVID-19 secure guidance.”
As well as inside of a property, gatherings of more two or more different households in private dwellings also includes a garden, yard, passage, stair or outhouse.
As stated in the legislation, a person in Greater Manchester who goes against the new rules “without a reasonable excuse” is thus committing an offence and therefore can be fined. An authorised person may issue a fixed penalty notice to anyone that the authorised person reasonably believes has committed an offence under these regulations, and is aged 18 or over.
Fines can be handed out by either a police officer, a police community support officer (PCSO), or “a person designated by the Secretary of State for the purposes of this regulation”.
The initial offence fine of £100 is halved to £50 if paid within 14 days of receipt, but failure to pay will see the amount specified as the fixed penalty to be:
£200 – in the case of the second fixed penalty notice received.
£400 – in the case of the third fixed penalty notice received.
£800 – in the case of the fourth fixed penalty notice received.
£1,600 – in the case of the fifth fixed penalty notice received.
£3,200 – in the case of the sixth and subsequent fixed penalty notices.
Proceedings for an offence under this above mentioned regulations may also be brought by the Crown Prosecution Service.
Under the new legislation, the Secretary of State is required to review these restrictions at least once a fortnight, starting on 19th August, but the restrictions can be scrapped “as soon as” the Secretary of State considers they are “no longer necessary” to prevent the spread of the virus, or to protect the public against it.
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You can read the full legislation document via the legislation.gov.uk website here.
For further information and guidance amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, do refer to official sources via gov.uk/coronavirus.
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Pair jailed after filming themselves driving over 130mph before killing man in fatal Manchester collision
Emily Sergeant
Two men who filmed themselves driving at speeds of over 130mph before a fatal collision earlier this year have now been jailed.
20-year-old Uways Hussain, of Marley Road in Manchester, has been sentenced to 11 years and eight months in prison, while 23-year-old Usmon Mahmood, of Buller Road in Manchester, has been sentenced to 12 years and nine months.
Their sentences follow a night of what Greater Manchester Police (GMP) called ‘dangerous driving’ around the South Manchester area, which started at around 11pm on the evening before the collision.
The vehicle – a Volkswagon Golf – belonged to Mahmood, but he allowed Hussain to drive the vehicle at high-speed throughout the night.
On the evening prior to the collision, beginning at around 11pm, Hussain and Mahmood were driving recklessly around the South Manchester area.
According to police, the pair filmed themselves consistently travelling at speeds of over 100mph on 30mph roads, and in several cases, theyvreached over 130mph and seconds before impact, were recorded at 139mph.
Recorded footage also showed them running red lights and weaving through traffic with no regard for the safety of other road users or pedestrians.
At one stage during the night, the pair stopped at a petrol station, where footage shows Mahmood inhaling from a balloon in the passenger seat, while later o Hussain can be seen doing over 100mph and also appearing to be inhaling from a balloon while driving.
The fatal collision happened at around 4:36am on Monday 9 March 2026 at the junction of Green End Road and Kingsway, where the victim – Sylvester Abayomi, 50 – was on his way to work and entered the junction on a green light, believing it was safe to proceed, but was then struck by the car being driven by Hussain, which had travelled through a red light at extremely high speed.
Sylvester Abayomi / Credit: GMP
Immediately following the collision, GMP received several emergency calls and an automatic alert from Hussain’s Apple Watch saying he had been involved in a collision.
During this alert, both men could be heard discussing plans to flee the scene and attempting to decide what evidence they needed to remove from the vehicle. They were also heard discussing reporting the vehicle as stolen, and shortly afterwards, they booked an Uber to escape.
Emergency services attended the scene, but sadly, despite their best efforts, Sylvester sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced dead.
GMP says it received its first report of the incident at 4:37am,, and within 12 minutes the pair had been located, caught, and arrested by officers.
DC Thomas Johnson, from GMP’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit, described the incident as ‘one of the most extreme cases of dangerous driving we have encountered’.
It’s also believed that this is one of the first times in the country where a passenger has been convicted for aid and abetting causing death by dangerous driving.
Featured Image – GMP
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Stockport band Blossoms set for BIG return to Leeds Festival this year
Thomas Melia
Blossoms have just announced their big return to Leeds Festival, as the four-day music event continues to impress with its stacked lineup.
They might have a ‘Joke About Divorce’ from time to time, but when it comes to entertaining a Leeds Festival crowd, Blossoms take it very seriously, having played at Bramham Park three times in the past decade already.
The Stockport band have captivated audiences since the rise of standout track ‘Charlemagne’ and more recently with the addition of their fifth studio album, Gary, named after an eight-foot fiberglass gorilla.
Known for always putting on a stellar performance, Tom, Joe, Charlie, Myles, and Josh are bringing a brand-new set to Leeds when they visit this August bank holiday weekend.
As well as releasing new music, Blossoms are making a big return to Leeds Festival 2026 / Credit: Publicity Picture (Supplied)
Currently, Leeds Festival 2026 has seven headline acts spanning all genres from Dance and EDM to Pop and Rap with the likes of Charli XCX, Raye, Dave and more topping the bill.
The Stockport five-piece are featured alongside three other insane artists as ‘Special Guests’, appearing next to Skepta, Sombr and Role Model.
Also listed on the lineup are rising stars like R&B vocal powerhouse Skye Newman, pop princess Jade, Merseyside indie rockers The K’s and Wigan-formed The Lilacs with more to be announced.
Although nothing is confirmed yet, this upcoming Leeds Festival set from Blossoms will contain high energy and obviously all their biggest and best bangers from across their four chart topping albums as well as new music.
Whether you’re there for ‘Your Girlfriend’ or ‘What Can I Say After I’m Sorry’, one thing’s for sure, you’re guaranteed to have an absolutely spectacular night.
Blossoms are making their big return to Leeds Festival 2026 which is taking place from 27 to 30 August at Bramham Park with tickets live HERE.
The Manc -
5th August 2020 
