Coronavirus: Lancashire faces decision on toughest tier 3 lockdown

Lancashire is expected to be the next area placed under tier 3 coronavirus restrictions, as talks with Westminster resume this morning amid a rift with local leaders that has seen the Greater Manchester Mayor accuse the government of treating the north-west with ‘contempt’.

Discussions about the financial package to accompany tighter restrictions, that will see pubs and bars shuttered are ongoing, but an announcement about stricter measures for Lancashire is likely to be imminent, Sky News reported.

Lancashire would join Liverpool City Region in the Very High tier, where household mixing is banned both indoors and in private gardens, while only restaurants are allowed to stay open. 

No other area has been placed under the top-level measures yet, with local leaders in Greater Manchester so far resisting the government’s pressure to enter tier 3 without better financial support.

Andy Burnham, Greater Manchester Mayor, accused Westminster of treating the north-west with “contempt”, telling a press briefing that ministers “are asking us to gamble our residents' jobs, homes and businesses and a large chunk of our economy on a strategy that their own experts tell them might not work".

He said: "Greater Manchester, the Liverpool City Region and Lancashire are being set up as the canaries in the coal mine for an experimental regional lockdown strategy as an attempt to prevent the expense of what is truly needed."

The mayor is calling for businesses forced to close under tier 3 restrictions to receive an 80 per cent subsidy to pay staff – the equivalent of the furlough scheme during the national lockdown in the spring.

The health secretary, Matt Hancock, said local leaders should "set aside party politics" and cooperate with the government – despite senior Conservatives, such as Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 committee, being among those opposing the tier 3 measures for the area. Mr Burnham has also received backing from Lancashire MPs – 11 of whom are Tories. 

Mr Hancock also suggested it was unlikely the government would agree grant more financial support to areas under tier 3 lockdown, saying: “There has been an unprecedented package of support that’s been put forward.”

Several areas in Lancashire have reported significant rises in their seven-day rates including Burnley (up from 415.0 to 605.0, with 538 new cases); West Lancashire (up from 293.9 to 465.4, with 532 new cases); Blackburn with Darwen (up from 257.9 to 442.2, with 662 new cases).