10million to plunge into Tier 3
Five more areas set to follow as Manchester talks end in deadlock
BORIS Johnson is poised to place Greater Manchester into the highest level of lockdown today, with as many as 10million people now facing the toughest restrictions by the end of the week.
Talks on whether the region should enter the ‘very high risk’ Tier Three ended in deadlock again yesterday, despite Downing Street warning that Manchester’s intensive care beds will be overrun by the middle of next month.
So far only Merseyside and Lancashire, with a combined population of three million are in Tier Three, which requires the closure of pubs and other venues considered risky.
A further 5.3million in Scotland and Northern Ireland are already under even more draconian restrictions, while 3.1million in Wales will be placed under full lockdown from Friday night.
However, Health Secretary Matt Hancock yesterday revealed that talks on Tier Three status were continuing not just with Greater Manchester, but also local leaders in South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Teesside and the North East.
It means that another 10million could face the toughest restrictions by the end of this week.
The Prime Minister has said he wants to gain the ‘consensus’ of local leaders before moving them into Tier Three. Ministers fear public confidence in restrictions will be damaged if they do not get their support.
But after more than a week of talks, Whitehall sources last night indicated that the PM felt he had no choice but to take action in Greater Manchester to tackle the ‘health emergency’ there. Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick yesterday held ‘final discussions’ with local leaders, which ended in acrimony.
In a gloomy statement, a Government spokesman described the talks as ‘disappointing’, adding: ‘This is particularly concerning against the backdrop of rising cases and hospitalisations in
Greater Manchester. We are carefully considering next steps.’
Ministers have been exasperated by the stance adopted by Andy Burnham, the Labour Mayor of Greater Manchester, who has led opposition to Tier Three status. On Sunday, the Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove accused him of ‘posturing’.
And yesterday, Downing Street published new data on the health crisis in the region in an attempt to persuade him to back down.
However, the move is also opposed by local Tory MPs. One of them, Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbench MPs, yesterday told Mr Hancock he remained ‘sceptical it will make a difference’.
Projections produced by the Government yesterday suggested Greater Manchester’s hospitals risked being overwhelmed.
‘Cases in Greater Manchester continue to rise,’ the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said. ‘Hospital admissions in Greater Manchester are doubling every nine days.’ The PM’s spokesman said that in the ‘best case scenario’ modelled by Government scientists, all free intensive care
‘Selective statistics’
capacity would be used by October 28 and would pass the peak of the first wave by November 2.
The projections suggest Covid patients would take up the entire current intensive care capacity by November 8 and the entire surge capacity by November 12.
However, No 10 acknowledged that the figures do not include capacity in Nightingale hospitals.
Last night Mr Bunham and his deputy Sir Richard Leese disputed Downing Street’s claim intensive beds would be overrun, accusing it of using ‘selective statistics’.
Mr Burnham has been pushing for the furlough scheme to be extended to ensure those whose employers are forced to close receive 80 per cent of their income rather than the 66 per cent on offer from its successor scheme.