‘THREE-TIER’ CORONAVIRUS ALERT SYSTEM ‘AIMING TO SAVE LIVES’
City set to face no extra restrictions
FAMILIES across North Staffordshire will be subject to no additional restrictions as a result of new measures announced last night.
Stoke-on-trent, Newcastle borough, the Staffordshire Moorlands and Stafford borough have been classified at Tier 1 (medium) under the updated Covid alert levels for England.
But people will no longer be able to mix indoors with households living in areas categorised as Tier 2.
That includes people living over the Cheshire border in Congleton, Crewe, Alsager, Sandbach, Nantwich and beyond.
Thousands of Cheshire families are facing the additional lockdown rules after the Prime Minister placed the county into the ‘high risk’ category for coronavirus.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the new three-tier system for Covid-19 restrictions in the House of Commons yesterday.
Tier 1 areas will continue with the rule of six and the 10pm hospitality curfew.
Under the new rules in Tier 2, residents are restricted from meeting indoors in any setting – including pubs and restaurants. People are still able to meet with loved ones outside.
Pubs and restaurants in tier two areas can remain open but can only be visited by people who live together in the same household.
The restrictions – which come into effect tomorrow – came as another 177 new coronavirus cases were announced in Stokeon-trent and Staffordshire over the past 24 hours.
Public Health England figures revealed another 50 positive
Covid-19 cases in Stoke-on-trent were confirmed yesterday.
This means the number since March stands at 2,453.
In Staffordshire there have been an additional 127 coronavirus cases bringing the total since the start of the pandemic to 6,659.
In Cheshire East, there have been 98 new coronavirus cases which means there have been a total of 3,969 in total.
And one coronavirus patient has died at the Mid Cheshire NHS Foundation trust as 50 more people have died across the UK.
Latest figures from Public Health England show there have now been 42,875 people to have died within 28 days of receiving a positive coronavirus test.
The new death means 217 people have now died at Mid Cheshire – which includes Leighton Hospital in Crewe.
Addressing the House of Commons yesterday, Mr Johnson said: “We must act to save lives. The evidence shows in restricting transmission our actions are saving lives. Left unchecked each person will infect between 2.7 and three others. But SAGE assess the national R is between 1.2 and 1.5 so we are suppressing that below the natural level.
“Medium alert will cover most of the country – this will include closure of hospitality at 10pm and rule of six.”
He added: “A local approach has inevitably produced complex rules so just as we simplified nationally we will simplify local rules by introducing a three tier system set at medium, high and very high. High aims to reduce households from mixing and support bubbles. In these areas the rule of six will carry on outdoors and in private gardens. Most areas will automatically move into that including east and west Cheshire.
“The medium alert level will cover most of the country and will consist of the current national measures, this includes the rule of six and the closure of hospitality at 10pm.”