How will leaks to the media about a second lockdown impact public opinion?

Local politicians in the north of England are furious that details of a second lockdown in the region leaked to the media before they had been consulted.

The pattern has repeated itself throughout the coronavirus pandemic. Council leaders and metro mayors complain that they have to pick up the pieces after restrictions such as the closure of pubs and restaurants are announced overnight, sometimes with immediate effect.

Mayors in the north offered Matt Hancock, the health secretary, a united front when they spoke earlier this week. They promised to support the next round of restrictions if they were consulted over the detail, and the government provided enough financial support for businesses affected in order to preserve jobs.

So the mayors were livid to see plans for pubs and restaurants in the north to close next week splashed across the front pages of Tory-supporting newspapers on Thursday. Andy Burnham, the Labour mayor of Greater Manchester, who has tried to work with the government in the crisis, declared it had become “impossible to deal with”.

Downing Street insisted: “We have sought to work closely with local authorities and local public bodies throughout. That is certainly going to continue.”

Advance briefing to friendly media outlets happens under governments of all hues.  As an old Whitehall saying goes: “You leak, I brief”. Today’s spin doctors speak of wanting to ensure a story “lands properly”. If new coronavirus rules were leaked by local politicians after consultations, media reports would likely have a more hostile tone.

But the government’s tactics are starting to create a political headache. The next curbs will affect many of the former “red wall” of working class, traditional Labour voters in the north and Midlands who switched to the Tories last December. These people will likely decide the next general election.

A dangerous narrative is developing. It is already clear the pandemic will widen the north-south divide. Mr Burnham warned that imposing new restrictions will mean the north is “levelled down” this winter, not “levelled up” as Mr Johnson has promised. Some public health officials believe the first lockdown was eased too quickly in the north by a London-centric government.

Ministers argue they must make the final decisions, that it is not always possible to reach agreement with local leaders – many of whom, for example, believe the 10pm closure for pubs and restaurants is counter-productive.

The Johnson government instinctively distrusts local authorities, and was slow to give them a role in contact tracing, even though they are more successful in tracking down people than NHS Test and Trace. But the Tories might risk losing public support in the north if they become embroiled in a war of words with local leaders who stand up for their areas.