Police warn they will fine those who break rules
STAFFORDSHIRE FORCE SAYS IT WILL NOT TOLERATE PEOPLE WHO FLOUT THE LOCKDOWN
PEOPLE caught breaking the lockdown rules have been warned they will be fined, say police in Staffordshire.
England is now in its third national lockdown in a bid to stop the spread of coronavirus and Staffordshire Police will not tolerate rule breakers and officers will be handing out fines to those who flout the restrictions.
A spokesman for the force is urging residents to do their bit to beat the virus by staying at home to save lives and protect the NHS.
It comes as both Staffordshire County Council and Stoke-on-trent City Council are reporting significant increases in coronavirus cases across the region.
As a result, everyone is being asked by to take personal responsibility for following the rules and staying home, unless they have a valid reason not to be there.
Emma Barnett, Deputy Chief Constable of Staffordshire Police, said: “It is critical that communities across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-trent continue to work together to follow the rules, to help prevent the NHS becoming overwhelmed by the new strain of Covid-19 and to prevent more lives being lost.
“We recognise that the last 10 months have been very challenging for people and will continue to be so over the coming weeks.
“I would like to thank the vast majority of people across our county for following the rules and adhering to the stricter guidelines.
“As throughout the pandemic, our officers will work with local communities to engage with people proportionately, fairly and using common sense, to encourage compliance with the regulations.
“Where people are determined to break these rules, which are in place to keep people safe, we will not hesitate to move to enforcement and issue a fine, targeting our resources towards those who commit the most serious breaches and put others at risk through their behaviour.
“Our experience so far is that the vast majority of people have taken personal responsibility for doing the right thing and I am confident that will continue so that we can bring the virus under control and start to think about a return to a more normal way of life.”
These latest restrictions mean you must only leave home to:
■ Shop for things you need, for you, or a vulnerable person;
■ Go to work, or provide voluntary or charitable services, if you cannot reasonably do so from home;
■ Exercise with those from your household, support bubble, or one other person;
■ Meet your support bubble, or childcare bubble, where necessary;
■ Seek medical assistance to avoid injury, illness, or risk of harm (including domestic abuse);
■ Attend educational or childcare establishments – for those eligible.
LONDON Mayor Sadiq Khan has declared a “major incident” as the spread of coronavirus threatens to “overwhelm” the capital’s hospitals.
City Hall said Covid-19 cases in London have exceeded 1,000 per 100,000, while there are 35% more people in hospital with the virus than at the peak of the pandemic in April.
The news came as the Government announced 1,325 people in the UK had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 – the highest number of deaths reported on a single day since the outbreak began.
A “major incident” means the “severity of the consequences” associated with it are “likely to constrain or complicate the ability of responders to resource and manage the incident”.
Mr Khan has written to Prime Minister Boris Johnson asking for more financial support for Londoners who need to selfisolate and are unable to work, and for daily vaccination data.
He is also asking for the closure of places of worship and for face masks to be worn routinely outside the home, including in crowded places and supermarket queues.
Mr Khan said: “The situation in London is now critical, with the spread of the virus out of control.
“The number of cases in London has increased rapidly, with more than a third more patients being treated in our hospitals now compared to the peak of the pandemic last April.
“Our heroic doctors, nurses and NHS staff are doing an amazing job but, with cases rising so rapidly, our hospitals are at risk of being overwhelmed. The stark reality is that we will run out of beds for patients in the next couple of weeks unless the spread of the virus slows down drastically.
“We are declaring a major incident because the threat this virus poses to our city is at crisis point. If we do not take immediate action now, our NHS could be overwhelmed and more people will die.
“Londoners continue to make huge sacrifices and I am today imploring them to please stay at home unless it is absolutely necessary for you to leave. Stay at home to protect yourself, your family, friends and other Londoners and to protect our NHS.”
City Hall said the London Ambulance Service is now taking up to 8,000 emergency calls a day, compared with 5,500 on a typical busy day.
Firefighters have been helping to drive ambulances and have responded to 100,000 incidents since they volunteered to help in April.
London’s regional director of Public Health England, Professor Kevin Fenton, said the situation now is the “biggest threat our city has faced in this pandemic to date”.