Five days of extra restrictions required for each day rules are relaxed at Christmas, say scientists
The latest recommendations from the government’s advisory board Sage have suggested that even a short five-day break over the festive period could mean an extra month in lockdown to compensate.
For every day COVID rules are relaxed in England over Christmas, an additional five days of tighter restrictions may be required, according to leading scientists.
The latest recommendations from the government’s advisory board Sage have suggested that even a short five-day break over the festive period could mean an extra month in lockdown to compensate.
Public Health England clarified the data following a press conference on Wednesday from medical adviser Dr Susan Hopkins – who claimed tighter rules could be needed before and after the holidays if Christmas was to be “as normal as possible.”
Speaking at Downing Street, Dr Hopkins said: “Hopefully, the government will make a decision that will allow us to have some mixing, but we will wait and see what that is.
“…I think once we have got past the Christmas period, if there’s been a release on some socialisation, we will all have to be very responsible and reduce contacts again.”
There have been calls for all four nations in Britain to adopt a united approach towards Christmas rules – enabling smoother travel between borders.
Early reports have suggested that more social mixing may be permitted over the holidays – even if only for a few days.
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According to the BBC, families will be urged to avoid large gatherings.
It is also expected the government will recommend travel by car rather than public transport.
But Business Secretary Alok Sharma said it was too early to lay out the rules.
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“Christmas is of course going to happen come what may,” he said.
“I would love to have members of my family round, but we just have to wait and see where we’re at.”
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England is expected to return to its tier system when lockdown ends on December 2.
Local area categorisations and tier rules are currently “under review” according to ministers.
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NASA reveals exact time you can see ‘Santa’s sleigh’ fly over Greater Manchester
Thomas Melia
Not long left till Santa and his reindeer crew fly over the skies of Manchester to drop off some of the most amazing presents of the year.
Manchester must have been extra nice this year, as Santa is treating us to lots of chances to catch a glimpse of him on his mission to deliver millions of gifts in time for Christmas.
Just like every year, Santa is dusting off his sleigh and polishing his boots to prepare for his biggest night visiting lots of kids and families. The sleigh is being filled with lots of goodies and surprises as we speak, it’s almost like he can smell the cookies and milk from here.
NASA, one of the world’s leading space companies, has been working meticulously to find out Santa’s route for 2024.
The world-renowned space agency has given us an exact time to look up at the stars to spot the main man himself and catch the glimmer of lights from his sleigh.
NASA has reveals the exact time you can see ‘Santa’s sleigh’ flying over Greater Manchester this Christmas / Credit: Tim Mossholder (via Unsplash)
As a man who has lots of experience globe trotting, it’s safe to say the big man knows how to efficiently cover as many houses as possible all in one night.
Santa’s sleigh will be present at the same time as the International Space Station (ISS), however anyone looking to see this festive vehicle can notice the lights won’t change direction and will not flash.
This time round, Santa is swooshing round Greater Manchester on Christmas Day a whole hour earlier than last year, meaning that nice list must be the longest it’s ever been.
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Tuesday 24 December
5:21am
Santa’s sleigh lights will be visible for two minutes travelling South East to East, as the man of Christmas weighs up his North West delivery route.
6:54am
Theres a six minute opportunity to catch those bright lights of Santa’s sleigh in the Manchester sky as he travels from West to South East, finalising his map before the big night ahead.
Wednesday 25 December
4:35am
It will be visible for less than a minute, no movement, in a static position. Santa will be doing a headcount of all the houses to make sure he’s not missed a single chimney.
6:08am
The sleigh will be seen for four minutes, moving from South West to South East, by now Santa will have finished his Manchester delivery drop and will be heading on over the hill to our friends in Leeds.
University of Bolton announces ‘historic’ name change despite opposition
Emily Sergeant
The University of Bolton has officially changed its name.
That’s right… after more than a year of deliberation, including opposition from other higher education institutions across the region, claiming it would be a cause of confusion for prospective students, Bolton‘s university has now successfully become the University of Greater Manchester in what has been described as a “historic” move.
The institution was given the go-ahead by the regulator, the Office for Students (OfS), to adopt the new name with immediate effect after submitting the change 17 months ago.
Current and past Students’ Union Presidents of the university, alongside its governors, unanimously supported the name change.
The name change was approved after an independent economic impact assessment report – which was commissioned by the university earlier this year – revealed that the benefit to the local economy would be millions of pounds per year.
With the name change coming ahead of the university’s 200th anniversary next year, this means that, as of 2025, all graduating students will receive degree certificates from the University of Greater Manchester instead.
On top of this, any former graduate dating back to when the institution achieved university status in 2005 can be issued with a replacement certificate featuring the new name, if they request one.
Announcing the name change last week, Professor George E Holmes, who is the President and Vice Chancellor called it a “historic moment” for the university.
“Bolton is an amazing town and it is our base, and it is our home where we intend to stay, it is the home of the University of Greater Manchester, now in Bolton.
“This is an institution that students and staff can be remarkably proud of. The name change is very good news for our students, very good news for the institution, very good news for the town and amazing news for jobs.”
The Manc -
18th November 2020 
