Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, is calling for a review of local lockdown restrictions and the support that is offered to areas that are having to lockdown.
Burnham believes that rules start to get overly complicated once there are one set of rules that are in place nationally and another set in place locally, for instance the rule of 6 doesn’t apply to Manchester because there are tighter restrictions in place there.
In a statement released by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Burnham said:
“I don’t envy the Government as it tries to find a way through a very difficult situation. But we have arrived at a position where people living in areas under local restrictions are understandably confused about the rules.
“They are too complex and there has been too much chopping and changing. We urgently need to simplify and clarify them to build greater public understanding and buy-in ahead of the winter.”
In the statement, he also called for better support for people who cannot go to work due to lockdown restrictions, for example loss of earnings for bar staff.
Speaking on Radio 4 this morning, Mr Burnham also said that, anecdotally, he believes that the current rules don’t account for the surge of people using public transport and also potentially gathering in homes once pubs and bars have shut their doors.
