boris johnson's strategy to tackle the
pandemic on a regional level in england
is now being challenged on several
fronts the mayor of greater manchester
labour's andy burnham is resisting plans
to place the region
in tier three with the toughest
restrictions he said it would amount to
a punishing lockdown
without proper support for the people
and businesses affected
his views were backed by some
conservative mps and local council
leaders
now the picture across england is
changing rather rapidly the gray area
on the map is a medium alert that means
the 10 pm curfew
and the rule of six the expanding orange
areas
will be on high alert from midnight
tomorrow and this
will now include cities towns and
villages stretching from barrow in
furnace
in cumbria to elm bridge down in surrey
it includes london
and essex and york and yes that means
that 28 million people
will no longer be able to mix indoors
with other households
at the moment only the liverpool city
region is in the red tier 3 that's on
very high alert where people are banned
from mixing with
other households indoors as well as in
most settings outdoors
but as i mentioned a few moments ago
greater manchester
and lancashire could soon be added to
that
uh red category well first tonight our
political editor laura kinsburg reports
on a government strategy that's under
strain
is it too late to stop the northwest
doors closing
the government wants bolton and every
part of greater manchester
in a limited lockdown pubs and bars shot
travel restrictions
no household mixing but students dominic
and connor say at college
everyone's already ignoring the rules
even though we might be like down people
are still going out in it so like
what's the point today i've been mixed
with a lot of other people like there's
no social distancing no nothing
angela's had enough i'm sick of it but
georgia thinks a limited lockdown
could be worth it as long as it curbs
the stem of coronavirus before christmas
and people are then able to see friends
and family around the time that's kind
of what my big concern is
it's not happening for now though listen
to the resistance from the mayor of
greater manchester
after angry conversations with number
10. they 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 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
this is an important moment
greater manchester will stand firm
no applause from 200 miles away though
have been furious
calls between ministers and mps
including angry tories
but the government's not ready to force
the northwest still trying to persuade
so i call upon local leaders to set
aside this party politics
and to work with us to put in place the
measures that are needed
in greater manchester across the
northwest
so that we can deal with this virus and
support people through it
the reluctance of politicians on the
ground to back harsher restrictions
has been the concern that those who live
there will lose out
where farms have to close the treasury's
promise to stump up two-thirds of wages
and workers could top up with benefits
but a well-respected former government
advisor says that
just doesn't cut it we are looking at a
period of destitution
do we want to go back to the days where
people can't put shoes on their
children's feet
you know this is what we are talking
about are we actually asking
people in places like liverpool to go
out and prostitute themselves
so that actually they can put food on
the table but more than 20 million
people
do know tonight they'll face extra
limits on their lives from midnight on
friday
right across london essex york parts of
derbyshire and cumbria
meeting friends indoors is off
for sue maybanks it's yet more time home
alone
well i haven't seen anybody inside my
flat since march
it's it's lonely so that's why i come
out
chat to friends outside in the fresh air
what else can you do martin says his dry
cleaning business is already on its
knees
we're in tier one and business is
completely completely dead look at it
if we get to tier two i mean it i don't
think it'll make much difference anyway
and bhajina worries about more time
indoors with the kids
i had her at home with me for six months
which was so hard to keep her
entertained
unlike his counterparts in the north of
england the london mayor
had been pushing for tighter rules the
virus
is spreading rapidly in every corner of
our city
nobody wants to see more restrictions
but this is deemed to be necessary in
order to protect londoners
i must warn londoners that we've got a
difficult winter ahead
downing street wants to push and pull
different parts of the country
in and out of limited lockdowns to match
the spread of the disease
but those differences mean a clash a war
of words at least between national and
local leaders
but in the end it's number 10 that has
the power to impose
tighter rules but remember the tories
want to keep their new found friends in
the north
there is no easy way out for either side
laura kunsberg bbc news westminster
now the mayor of london labour sadiq
khan said there was simply no other
option
than to introduce the new restrictions
there he said
he would continue to press the
government for more financial support
but added that the winter months would
be difficult
more concerns have been raised about the
impact of the restrictions on businesses
particularly in the hospitality sector
with london's ten thousand
pubs and restaurants our special
correspondent lucy manning has more
details
london's ability to meet up drink up and
to eat out has already been limited
theaters shut nightclubs closed pubs
finishing early
and now nine million londoners facing
more restrictions we've only got a small
garden here
lauren johns owns a pub in hackney in
east london
her area has some of the capital's
highest covered rates
she's now scared what direction her
business will go in
we already had to reduce our capacity
massively to allow for social distancing
and then the the 10 pm curfew that's cut
trade by about 25
and as then now this not allowing
households to mix indoors
and it's just a triple whammy we've got
such restrictions on us now
but no financial backing from the
government unless we're forced to close
but that won't happen until the next
tier nearby
ebony ferguson and her four children can
look out over london
but worry like many in the city without
gardens how they'll see relations
now facing the same problems as many
have in parts of the north for months
my eldest is autistic and partially
sighted and he sees his nana
every weekend so that's a break in this
pattern so he's going to struggle with
that
i don't think then it's going to be able
to be outside it's too cold for her
but half an hour's drive from hackney
over the river thames most of the areas
in south london have lower rates of
covered cases
some here don't think all of london
should be stopped from mixing inside
with other households
but politicians are adamant the new
restrictions must go
across the whole of london because they
say londoners don't
work and socialize and live in the same
places
and that covered cases are going up
across
every borough in the city in southwark
by shakespeare's globe theatre
the area only has nearly half the rate
of covered cases
compared to london's worst areas
unfortunately
the stage is set for more job losses
we see by the end of october yes i think
we'll have lost 120 staff
and we've got people who've been working
with us for 10 years who've been made
redundant so
it's breaking the heart of everyone i
don't think we're going to see a london
nightlife until
vaccine has arrived friends enjoy their
last drink for a while
they won't be able to meet inside from
saturday and
autumn outside isn't appealing pandemics
are real
to be honest we've lived through a lot
worse things you know we can get through
this i feel like people just need to be
safe
stay at home and just follow the
restrictions that are in place harder
for pubs and restaurants
tougher for families difficult for
friends
like leeds like birmingham and elsewhere
this
will now be life in london lucy manning
bbc news
well tonight local leaders in lancashire
have been holding talks on whether to
join the
liverpool city region in that top alert
level
and if so what kind of government
support they think they'd need
our special correspondent ed thomas has
spent the day in burnley which has seen
one of the biggest surges of infection
in the uk
in recent weeks the waiting
the uncertainty what next for burnley
normally on thursday i remember it was
very very busy
completely we go in quiet even i can see
from outside the town is quiet
it's not doing star and dylan any favors
and the moment the business-wise we are
getting quiet
and we are losing money because we got a
lot of bills to pay we got run to pay
day like this we supposed to like three
four staffs working in here
me and mamey we've been really quiet
like literally we've been sat here doing
nothing
council leaders in lancashire are in
talks with the government the most
severe
covered alert level is almost certainly
coming but as cases rise
so too the frustration i'm fed up of it
to be honest i'm fed up of hearing about
it it's boring mess i'm outraged my
children they've had to isolate they've
been tested they are negative
they've gone back to school two days
later they're another child has been
positive
so she's come back home again for two
weeks this is ridiculous
and down the road the bridge is still
serving they seem to be playing politics
with people's livelihoods but there's
constant worry for simon
we're all waiting on a tender up to see
if
you know our industry is going to be
shut down while they just
tart about about how much money they're
going to get it won't make a difference
you need a full lockdown i had to like
go on
benefits i've never been on benefit i've
been working since i was 13 years old
avisha lost her job as an estate agent
in the first lockdown
she's 24 and still out of work so they
basically just said
like because of corvid they have to let
staff go
and i still have my bills to pay for so
yeah it's just a massive hit for me
what are your options to move away to
move away
and find a new future for myself really
but there's another upsetting reality
we're the fourth highest in the country
at the moment neighboring practices over
50 cases in a week it's ripping through
the terraced housing
there's nothing we can do to stop it and
dr mark jobon is seeing it every day now
so what is the pressure like now on
frontline services frontline services in
general practice in particular
is significant practices and services
are really really creaking the hospital
is full it's where it was in april at
the previous peak how dangerous is this
moment
it's dangerous and i'm really worried
about the people
of this area it is an anxious time for
so many
as lancashire waits to hear its new
covered rules
hugh tonight local authority leaders
across lancashire
are meeting right now this meeting has
been going on since
9 30 tonight this deal to move to a very
high
covet alert level a deal from the
government
is being considered what they're looking
at is the test and trace package on
offer
does it do the job what they're looking
at is the financial support package on
offer
the question is is the government
offering enough resources to cover the
hit
that will happen to businesses here like
pubs and bars if they have to close
i understand that this is being
considered as the final offer from the
government
and it could still be rejected ed many
thanks again
thomas our special correspondent there
with the situation in burnley and in
lancashire tonight and as
ed was saying really at the heart of the
disagreement between
regional leaders in england and and the
government is this question of how much
financial support is needed
uh for those areas facing much higher
restrictions
let's talk to our economics editor
faisal islam who's joined me here in the
studio
is this the heart of the debate really
what the chancellor what the treasury
can do in terms of these regions and
the help they're asking for yeah i mean
there's pressure on the treasury here
the government could just impose these
tier three very high alert
levels if they wanted to but they need
the local leaders
in order to give it backing locally to
get people frankly to comply to have a
point to these restrictions
and so the people like andy burnham in
greater manchester are
using that leverage to say well we want
the return
of the full furlough scheme as it was
last march 80
funding of wages treasury my
understanding standing firm that that's
not what they want to do we heard the
chancellor
today defending the two-thirds rate for
businesses that have to be
shot saying it compares well with
european
uh equivalent schemes that it can be
topped up with universal credit for
lower paid
workers but that's not the only issue in
the tier 2 the high alert
level areas you have this issue where
some businesses have their business
model temporarily crippled
thinking of pubs where you can't meet
between different households indoors
and yet they don't have that level of
support they have a considerably lower
level of support the worst of all or
both worlds is what they're
calling it they need support london's
joined that other places too
and then just in general now you have
companies having to make big decisions
based
on a worse scenario of what's going to
happen over six months
big pub chain marston's uh announcing
that two thousand employees
will move straight from furlough uh to
the uh and they have to let them go
faisal only thanks again for the update
there faisal is lamar economics editor