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.
The legislation, which was published yesterday, applies to residents in England only and comes over five days after Health Secretary Matt Hancock made the 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.
According to the new government guidance and legislation, those living in Greater Manchester “should follow these rules when meeting people who you do not live with”.
You should not:
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“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.”
The new legislation gives police the power to take action against those that break these rules, including asking people to disperse and issuing fixed penalty notices.
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 fines can even rise to a total of £3,200 in the the case of the sixth and subsequent fixed penalty notices.
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⚠️ Local restrictions in Manchester ⚠️
Cases of coronavirus are going up in Manchester. You MUST follow Government issued guidance to protect yourself and others.
— Manchester City Council (@ManCityCouncil) July 31, 2020
There are a number of exceptions to breaking the rules as detailed in the legislation though.
Whilst rules ban gatherings of two or more people from multiple households in private dwellings – including gardens, yards, passages, stairs and outhouses – there are exceptions for certain circumstances.
These include:
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If someone is giving birth and the person is at attending at the person who is giving birth’s request.
If a person is visiting a person they reasonably believe is dying and the concerned person is a member of the dying person’s household, or they are close family member or a friend of the dying person.
A person is fulfilling a legal obligation.
If the gathering is for work or education purposes or voluntary or charitable purposes.
For the purposes of childcare provided by a person registered under Part 3 of the Childcare Act 2006.
To provide care or assistance to a vulnerable person including personal care.
To facilitate a house move.
To provide emergency assistance.
To enable one or more persons in the gathering to avoid injury or illness, or to escape a risk of harm.
To continue existing arrangements for access to, and contact between, parents and children where the children do not live in the same household as their parents, or one of their parents.
Organised public gatherings of more than 30 people – both on land and vessels (with the exception of house boats and vessels for public transport) – are now also banned under the new regulations, unless:
The gathering has been organised by a business, a charitable, benevolent or philanthropic institution, a public body, or a political body, and the person responsible for organising the gathering has carried out a risk assessment.
The organiser has taken all reasonable measures to limit the risk of transmission of the coronavirus, taking into account the risk assessment.
The person concerned is an elite sportsperson, the coach of an elite sportsperson, or (in the case of an elite sportsperson who is a child), the parent of an elite sportsperson, and the gathering is necessary for training or competition.
The gathering is reasonably necessary for works purposes, or provision of voluntary or charitable services.
It is for education, or training.
It is for childcare provided by a person registered under Part 3 of the Childcare Act 2006, or as part of supervised activities provided for children.
It is to provide emergency assistance, or to enable one or more persons in the gathering to avoid injury or illness, or to escape a risk of harm.
The person concerned is fulfilling a legal obligation.
Following an increase in COVID-19 cases, there are now changes to the rules on gatherings in Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and East Lancashire.
— UK Prime Minister (@10DowningStreet) July 31, 2020
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”.
You can read the full legislation document via the legislation.gov.uk website here.
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For further information and guidance amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, do refer to official sources via gov.uk/coronavirus.
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Manchester rent is now ‘41% more expensive than five years ago, according to a recent study
Danny Jones
Yes, that’s right, as per some of the latest data on leased housing in central Manchester, it’s now approximately 41% more expensive to rent here than it was half a decade ago.
If you’ve lived in and around the city centre for long enough, chances are that you’ve already been feeling that difference, especially of late.
The ongoing cost-of-living crisis roughly began in 2021, following the economy and the world essentially opening back up after multiple lockdowns, so it’s little surprise that new research has shown affordability when it comes to renting has been on a slump ever since, too.
As well as the price of seemingly most things in everyday life going up post-pandemic, the average rental rate for even just a one-bedroom flat/apartment has jumped up significantly between 2020 and 2025.
Even some ‘available’ housing in town is being hampered by claddin (Credit: Valienne via WikiCommons)
That’s according to the numbers crunched by credit card experts, Zable, anyway.
Not only did their recent report cite the rent prices going up even before the cost of living crisis – essentially following the outset of the Covid-19 outbreak – but if their figures, the rate of inflation and the unwaveringly high demand for housing are anything to go by, this trajectory is likely to continue in 2026.
As of February this year, around one in three UK households is now a single-person occupancy, which already comes with its challenges (the Manchester City Council tax discount being a thin lifeline for countless), not to mention energy bills and the cost of groceries continuing on an upwards trend.
Put in the simplest and most reductive terms, it’s now almost £300 dearer for most people to live on their own than it was back in 2020, and besides Liverpool clocking in as second on the list of increasingly expensive cities to live (a 42.12% increase), Manchester came in third.
You can see the full table down below:
Rank
City
% increase – 2020-2025
Difference from 2020 to 2025 in £
Average rental cost for a 1 bed 2025
1
Newport
47.39%
£2,611
£8,121
2
Liverpool
42.12%
£2,290
£7,727
3
Manchester
41.00%
£3,364
£11,569
4
Edinburgh
40.28%
£4,620
£16,090
5
Leicester
39.93%
£2,391
£8,379
6
Wolverhampton
39.22%
£2,049
£7,273
7
Nottingham
39.07%
£2,400
£8,543
8
Glasgow
38.02%
£2,679
£9,725
9
Colchester
37.63%
£2,617
£9,572
10
Cardiff
37.06%
£2,828
Average rental cost for a 1-bed 2025
Another fear is that with lots of people finding it hard to manage living in other major cities like London, even those moving to Manchester are also having an impact on how available affordable housing is here.
That’s why schemes such as the new ‘social rent’ development over in Wythenshawe are so important to the current generations of renters, with the possibility of owning your own property in the future becoming increasingly difficult for so many.
It’s also worth noting that Manchester ranked fourth among the British locations where the cost of living is said to have increased the most over the past five years, with the average difference in annual spend growing by an estimated 22.84%.
1,500 miles of roadworks lifted to help ease congestion for drivers this bank holiday weekend
Emily Sergeant
1,500 miles of roadworks have now been lifted across the UK.
With half term well underway already, and now millions of drivers set to hit the road over the next five days as Easter bank holiday weekend arrives, giving Brits two extra days off, National Highways has now confirmed that, as of today (Thursday 2 April), around 1,500 miles of roadworks have been lifted nationwide.
Roads are expected to be ‘especially’ busy tomorrow in particular (Good Friday), National Highways predicts, as this is the day people are most likely to head on a spring getaway.
So, in a bid to help ease congestion for drivers up and down the motorways, roadworks have been removed up until Bank Holiday Monday (6 April).
“By keeping 98% of routes clear, we’re supporting the wider economy where it matters most to tourism, freight, and local businesses,” National Highways said in a statement.
1,500 miles of roadworks have been lifted to help ease congestion for drivers this bank holiday weekend / Credit: pxfuel
The decision to lift the roadworks comes as a new national survey revealed a total of 71,254 breakdowns were recorded in spring (March–May) last year, compared with 56,702 in 2022.
It also showed that more than one in two (53%) UK drivers have broken down on a motorway or major A-road in their lifetime, highlighting how common the experience is for both drivers and passengers, and why it’s important to take relevant safety precautions from all sides.
29% of drivers think their breakdown could have been prevented with simple vehicle safety checks, but 17% admit to rarely or never conducting these.
National Highways echoes the statement that most of these incidents could be avoided through ‘quick and basic’ checks, and is urging drivers heading away this bank holiday weekend to familiarise themselves with how to do these before hitting the roads, so they can reach their destinations safely, saving costs and reducing delays for all road users in the process.
“Millions of people will be hitting the roads over Easter, and we want everyone to have a safe and smooth journey,” commented Colin Stevenson, who is the Road Safety Information Lead at National Highways.
“A few simple checks can help to prevent many of the breakdowns we see each year and help drivers avoid unexpected delays, cost and stress.
The Manc -
5th August 2020 
