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.
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.
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”.
“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.
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.
News
Urgent appeal issued following serious road traffic collision involving motorcyclist on M60
Emily Sergeant
An urgent appeal has been issued following a serious road traffic collision on the M60.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) are appealing for information and dash-cam footage, as well as urging witnesses to come forward, after a motorcyclist suffered life-threatening injuries during a collision on the M60 this past Saturday (12 July).
Shortly after 1:40pm, police were called a report of a collision involving a motorbike on the anti-clockwise side of the motorway, between junctions 25 and 24.
When patrols responded and arrived on the scene, they found a man in his 50s – believed to be the motorcyclist – with life-threatening injuries, and was subsequently taken to hospital for treatment in an air ambulance, with his family being informed in the process.
An urgent appeal has been issued following a serious road traffic collision involving motorcyclist on the M60 / Credit: Wikimedia Commons
The M60 was closed in one direction, between Bredbury and Denton, following the crash from around 2:30pm onwards, and all traffic was diverted while investigations were ongoing.
GMP’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit is in the process of conducting enquiries, and at this time, it isn’t believed that any other vehicle was involved in this incident.
This is why police are appealing for anyone who may have witnessed the collision, or who has dash-cam footage, to get in on contact.
Police have also thanked the members of the public who stopped by the roadside to give the man initial first aid before emergency services arrived.
Police issue update on Oasis arrests and fence-jumpers
Daisy Jackson
Greater Manchester Police have shared an update on the arrests made at the opening two nights of Oasis Live ’25.
More than 100,000 people have flocked up to Heaton Park on Friday and Saturday evening for the first two of five Oasis reunion shows.
And largely, things have gone without a hitch, with only 15 arrests made so far.
The majority of these are arrests on suspicion of fraud, with five men and a woman in three separate incidents attempting to access the Oasis gig with fake accreditation.
Another man was arrests on suspicion of assaulting a member of security staff.
Two more men were arrested on suspicion of assault – a section 18 inside the Oasis gig at Heaton Park, and another for a section 47 outside.
Police have also said that ‘a number of people’ have attempted to access the gigs without tickets, with a perimeter gate breached on Saturday night, but ‘failed to do so’.
Five drones which breached airspace restrictions were seized on Friday.
A Section 34 Dispersal Order, which gives officers the power to direct individuals to leave a specified area and not return for 48 hours, has been in place for each night of the Oasis concerts so far.
This will be re-assessed before each concert this week, with the Gallagher brothers back at Heaton Park on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday.
GMP around Manchester ahead of the Oasis reunion shows. Credit: GMP
Assistant Chief Constable Matt Boyle said: “We have been planning for these events for several months, working with partners and the organisers to make sure everyone can enjoy the concerts safely. To that end, I’m pleased to say that the first two Oasis homecoming events have been a success.
“What has been especially pleasing is how more than 100,000 people have enjoyed these iconic events safely and without trouble.
“We will have a highly visible presence in and around Heaton Park, and across the city, to ensure the next three events continue to pass safely.
“A number of people without tickets attempted to gain entry through a perimeter gate on Saturday night but failed to do so.
Credit: The Manc GroupCredit: Tiktok benwalkerofficialPolice say ‘just 15’ arrests made at Oasis so far
“We continue to support the event organisers and the local authority with their plans preventing any unauthorised access to the arena site.
“While arrests have thankfully been minimal, we have had to take some suspects to custody, including one after an alleged assault on a steward on Saturday night. We will not tolerate any abuse of anyone doing their job.
“On Friday night we also dealt with a number of breaches of airspace restrictions involving drones where our officers seized five drones and spoke to two other pilots.
“We continue to have airspace restrictions in place on the nights of the concerts and anyone found breaching the one-and-a-half-mile restriction zone could face prosecution.”