Council leader: We need extra £5m for Tier 3

Coun Brett questions whether government’s three-tier approach will work

THE leader of the Rochdale Borough Council in Greater Manchester has welcomed the government’s Tier 3 grant of £60m - but says an extra £5m is needed.

Greater Manchester has now been plunged into tier 3 restrictions, which sees pubs and bars that do not serve substantial meals closing, and further restrictions on mixing.

The government’s three-tier strategy of regional measures is designed to avoid a national lockdown - however, Leader of the Council, Allen Brett, has doubts about its effectiveness.

He said: “We have replied to the government, who were trying to get us to act individually. We have stuck together. households

“£60m is not enough we will have to find the extra £5m from other sources.

“We are looking at big businesses to show their support for their smaller brethren.”

He said the extra £5m is needed to give all workers on furlough 80% of the wages, and from calculations, £65m is the minimum needed to achieve this, according to Coun Brett.

About the effectiveness of Tier 3, Coun Brett said: “The question is not whether it’s necessary, it’s whether it will work.

“I’m not convinced it will work and I don’t think scientists are.”

He added that tier three is under a “sunset clause”, meaning that it lapses after 28 days, and is under constant review - so restrictions could last just four weeks.

But Coun Brett fears for smaller businesses. He said: “It’s the small pubs, known as ‘wet pubs’ - it will affect clubs that don’t do food.

“The six big pubs in the town centre are staying open, along with Wetherspoons in Heywood and Middleton.

“They serve food. The money will be used to support businesses - we’re still working out the details.”

Coun for Spotland and

Falinge, Coun Faisal Rana, has backed up Coun Brett’s comments about the effectiveness of Tier 3.

He said: “But does anyone believe this latest clampdown will work?

“Even many of the government’s own scientists say it will not get the infection rate under control.

“In Rochdale, our infection rate is rising to dangerous levels.

“Is it any wonder when hardly anyone knows what the rules are when they keep chopping and changing all the time?

“Thousands of Rochdale jobs will be lost and hundreds of local businesses will go bust through no fault of their own because this government is determined to tackle this crisis on the cheap.”