What we know about the local lockdown measures being announced later today
The Prime Minister is announcing a new set of targeted restrictions for cities and towns in England today - but where does Manchester sit in all of this?
The Prime Minister is announcing a new set of targeted restrictions for cities and towns in England today (12 October) – which could result in the closure of pubs, bars, restaurants and gyms in areas with high infection rates.
Plans are being made to place regions into a ‘three tier’ local lockdown system – with each tier having its own set of rules determined by a risk level: ‘medium’, ‘high’, or ‘very high’.
Tier Three would be the strictest – with businesses asked to close and and citizens urged to avoid mixing in any setting.
Reports surfacing over the weekend have suggested that Liverpool is the first to be categorised as Tier Three – with residents now anticipating the mass closure of hospitality.
Casinos and bookmakers are also expected to shut – but schools and universities may remain open.
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Numbers have risen sharply in the Liverpool City Region in recent weeks – with Knowsley recording 944 cases per 100,000 people in the two weeks to 4 October (the highest in the country).
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has also told his city to “start preparing for additional restrictions” in the coming days, with positive test numbers growing in the capital.
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London is at a serious tipping point in the spread of this virus – and we need to start preparing for additional restrictions.
How we act this weekend will determine where we are in the weeks to come.
The most likely outcome is that all ten GM boroughs will be bundled into Tier Two or Three. This would mean that local pubs, bars and possibly restaurants could close as part of a local lockdown.
Infection rates have slowed in recent days, but nonetheless remain at a high level across the board.
Greater Manchester was one of the first areas to be hit by government intervention after the initial lockdown was lifted – with a ban on different households meeting indoors announced in July.
But if new measures are deemed to be too severe, they be contested by Manchester’s local leaders.
Last week, Chancellor Rishi Sunak set out a furlough scheme to protect any businesses affected this winter, promising the government would cover two thirds of worker wages.
But Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham, alongside other Northern leaders, called the package “insufficient”.
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“To accept the Chancellor’s package would be to surrender our residents to hardship and our businesses to potential failure and collapse and we are not prepared to do that,” said Burnham.
Night Time Economy Adviser for Greater Manchester Sacha Lord, anticipating the closure of local hospitality, has even launched legal action against the government.
“We have been given no tangible scientific evidence to merit a full closure of hospitality and entertainment sectors,” said Lord.
“[We] have been left with no option than to escalate the matter with legal action.”
In Greater Manchester, we will not accept shutting our pubs/bars without any scientific evidence. That’s why, with the support of @AndyBurnhamGM I’m heading a group to take the Government to a Judicial Review. https://t.co/QYLC6oZQVu
Under the new local lockdown system, it is understood there may be flexibility for local leaders to make decisions for their own area moving ahead.
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Reports surfacing this morning suggest that Liverpool will have discretion over the closure of restaurants for example, rather than simply enforcing a blanket ban on hospitality.
The rules and regulations may become clearer later today, as the PM is set to outline the measures in the Commons.
Johnson will then attend a press conference in the evening – joined by Rishi Sunak and England’s Chief Medical Officer Prof Chris Whitty.
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Full list of road closures set to be in place for Manchester Day 2024
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Day is back for 2024 this weekend, and the full list of road closures set to be in place has been confirmed.
Now that schools are officially out across Greater Manchester, and the summer holidays are well and truly here, the hugely-popular Manchester Day is making a return once again this Saturday 27 July, and as always, it’s set to be “the day summer officially starts” in the city centre – with a massive celebration of “all things Mancunian” on the cards.
The theme of this year’s annual event is ‘Let The Games Begin’, and it’s inspired by the international summer of sport, just 2024 Olympics kicks off over in Paris.
The day will be packed full of free events and activities to get involved with.
Some city centre roads will be closed on Friday 26 and Saturday 27 July for Manchester Day.
These will include:
🛣️Deansgate 🛣️St Ann Street 🛣️St Mary’s Gate 🛣️Market Street 🛣️King Street
— Manchester City Council (@ManCityCouncil) July 21, 2024
But of course, in order for the all the fun to go ahead as safely as possible, and as tends to be the case for events like these, Manchester City Council says it will need to make some temporary road closures to facilitate it.
The full list of road closures has now been confirmed by the Council, and there’s some major city centre thoroughfares set to be out of action.
Here’s everything you need to know.
Manchester Day is back for 2024 to celebrate the international summer of sport / Credit: Manchester City Council
Manchester Day 2024 – Road Closures
Saturday 27 July
From 6am to 11:59pm, Manchester City Council has confirmed that the following roads will be closed:
Deansgate (Manchester Cathedral to John Dalton Street) – access will be maintained to Marks and Spencer’s car park and Number One Deansgate.
St Ann Street (Deansgate to Cross Street)
St Mary’s Gate (Exchange Street to Deansgate)
St Mary’s Street (Southbridge Street to Deansgate)
Market Street (Exchange Street to Cross Street)
Fennel Street (Corporation Street to Cathedral Street) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cathedral Street (Fennel Street to Exchange Square) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cateaton Street (Exchange Square to Deansgate)
Barton Square (St Ann’s Square to St Ann Street)
King Street (Cross Street to Deansgate) – no access for deliveries.
All accessible bays, bus lanes, and taxi ranks within the closed areas will also be suspended during from 6pm on Friday 26 July to 11:59pm on Saturday 27 July.
The parking suspensions set to be in place are:
Deansgate (Manchester Cathedral to John Dalton Street)
St Ann Street – including the bays outside St Ann’s Church (Deansgate to Cross Street)
St Mary’s Gate (Exchange Street to Deansgate)
St Mary’s Street (Southbridge Street to Deansgate)
Southgate (St Mary’s Street to King Street West)
Market Street (Exchange Street to Cross Street)
Fennel Street (Corporation Street to Cathedral Street) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cathedral Street (Fennel Street to Exchange Square) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cateaton Street (Exchange Square to Deansgate)
Victoria Street (Cathedral Approach to Deansgate)
Todd Street (Corporation Street to Station Approach)
King Street (Spring Gardens to Southgate)
South King Street (Ridgefield to Deansgate)
Barton Square (St Ann’s Square to St Ann Street)
King Street West (Deansgate to St Mary’s Parsonage)
St James’s Square (John Dalton Street to South King Street)
Cross Street (King Street to Corporation Street)
Museum Street (Peter Street to Windmill Street)
Marsden Street (Cheapside to Brown Street)
Manchester Day 2024: Let The Games Begin! will take over the city centre on Saturday 27 July from 12pm-6pm.
Check out everything you need to know ahead of the event here.
‘Complex’ Metrolink repairs to the Rochdale via Oldham line could take weeks to complete
Emily Sergeant
Work currently underway on the Rochdale via Oldham line is expected to take several weeks to complete.
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has confirmed that land movement affecting the Metrolink network near Derker has now “slowed”, and this means that detailed ground investigations and temporary repair works have been able to get underway.
In order for trams to run again on the crucial line from the city centre to the two major Greater Manchester towns, TfGM says that a small section of track has to be moved back – also known as ‘slewed’ – into its original position.
The overhead line poles also need to be repaired too, the transport operator revealed.
Rochdale line update
Land movement affecting the Metrolink network near Derker has slowed, enabling detailed ground investigations and temporary repair works to get underway.
To get trams running again, a small section of track has to be moved back into its original position… pic.twitter.com/byERjitdi1
Unfortunately though, due to the “complex” nature of these works, and despite the fact that TfGM says it’s actively looking to “accelerate” the repairs, the project is expected to take up to five weeks to complete in full.
On top of this, the detailed ground investigations will also establish whether any further work to strengthen foundations beneath the track will be needed at a later date.
TfGM has apologised for the inconvenience caused to passengers.
‘Complex’ Metrolink repairs to the Rochdale via Oldham line could take weeks to complete / Credit: TfGM
Speaking on the scale of works currently underway, and how long he expects them to continue for, Pete Sommers, who is TfGM’s Network Director for Metrolink, said: “I’m sorry for the impact this is having, and will continue to have, on people’s journeys.
“We are working to get trams running through the area again, but this remains a complex and challenging issue and it could still be a few weeks before this happens.
“We will of course keep passengers updated, and I’d encourage people to check our social media channels and website for the latest information and advice.”