Devon and Cornwall’s new Covid measures

DEVON and Cornwall will get more support from the Government to tackle soaring Covid rates, it was announced last night.

As the August Bank Holiday – one of the region’s busiest times – gets under way, Devon and Cornwall are to receive “an enhanced response package”.

The measures, which are subject to sign-off by Number 10, will not mean extra restrictions for the region. But what ministers are calling “support measures” will be rolled out to assist in education settings and increased public communications, clearly outlining the continued risks of Covid-19 and the need to take personal action.

The advice to continue to wear facemasks across the South West in indoor settings and to maintain social distancing is being stepped up too.

The special measures will last for five weeks – but a review will be conducted at week four to determine whether the automatic reduction at week five is appropriate, or if there is a case for re-escalation of further measures.

A letter written by minister Nadine Dorries and sent to the region’s MPs states that following discussions with officials in the relevant South West local authorities they will be identifying the appropriate interventions and will start deploying the enhanced response area measures immediately.

The letter says while the Prime Minister has said he wants the whole country to move out of and remain out of these restrictions together, the Government is trusting people to be responsible and to act with caution and common sense – and to make decisions about how best to protect themselves and their loved ones, informed by the risks.

The suggestion is that if it doesn’t happen, measures could be ‘re-escalated’.

For the week ending August 22, Cornwall had the highest infection rate in England, with West Devon 3rd, Teignbridge 4th, Torbay 5th, Mid Devon 6th, Torridge 7th, East Devon 9th and Exeter 10th.

Luke Pollard, MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport, said: “What this basically means is our rates are the highest in the country, and as a result they are kicking in new measures, which is basically a response to those high rates of infection.

“It’s partly a reflection on the fact that we’re a tourist destination, partly a reflection on the fact that we didn’t have high levels of Covid during the main outbreak, because we had lower levels, and so there’s less natural immunity built up by people having Covid.”