UK Gov't, Manchester Mayor Face Looming Deadline Over Tougher COVID-19 Measures - Minister

UK Gov't, Manchester Mayor Face Looming Deadline Over Tougher COVID-19 Measures - Minister

The UK government and the authorities in Manchester face a 12:00 deadline [11:00 GMT] on Tuesday to come to an agreement on moving the northern English city into the highest tier of the country's new COVID-19 alert system, Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick said, as Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham pushes the government to provide greater support to those who would be impacted by the new lockdown measures

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th October, 2020) The UK government and the authorities in Manchester face a 12:00 deadline [11:00 GMT] on Tuesday to come to an agreement on moving the northern English city into the highest tier of the country's new COVID-19 alert system, Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick said, as Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham pushes the government to provide greater support to those who would be impacted by the new lockdown measures.

According to Jenrick, who spoke to reporters late on Monday, the government and the city authorities have been locked in 10 days of talks to reach an agreement on moving Manchester from tier 2 to tier 3.

Citing what he said was the worsening public health situation in Manchester, the housing secretary said that an ultimatum had been set for Tuesday.

"I've written this evening to the mayor of Greater Manchester and to local leaders in the city region to say that if we're not able to reach an agreement by noon tomorrow [Tuesday] then with deep regret, I'll have to advise the prime minister that we're not able to reach an agreement at this time," Jenrick told reporters.

Burnham, the Labour mayor of Manchester, has criticized the government for failing to provide the necessary economic support to mitigate the negative impacts of tougher lockdown measures.

In particular, the mayor has urged the government to pay up to 80 percent of the wages of those forced out of work due to the lockdown, as was the case when the first wave of COVID-19 struck this past spring. The government's new support scheme, unveiled by Chancellor Rishi Sunak, would only pay 67 percent of affected workers' wages.

Burnham told reporters on Monday that he was "not going to be pressurized" into accepting the move into tier 3, adding that he also was "not just going to roll over at the sight of a cheque."

During an appearance on the BBC Radio 4 broadcaster on Tuesday morning, Burnham said that further meetings with local leaders were planned ahead of the deadline.

In a government letter seen by the ITV news broadcaster, Greater Manchester was offered 22 million Pounds ($28.5 million) in funding for entering tier 3, less than both Merseyside and Lancashire received when they were placed under the same measures.

A so-called local lockdown was enforced in Greater Manchester three months ago, which then became tier 2 in England's new three-tiered alert system that was introduced on October 12. Tier 3, the highest alert level, bans all household mixing and forces pubs and bars that do not sell food to close.

In Liverpool, the first UK city to be placed under tier 3 measures, gyms, casinos, bookmakers, and pubs have been closed since Wednesday.

The UK's Department of Health and Social Care on Monday confirmed 18,804 new positive tests for COVID-19, up from 16,981 new cases the day before. The country's official case total and death toll currently sit at 741,212 and 43,726, respectively.