Greater Manchester will stay under Tier 3 restrictions until at least the end of 2020.
It was hoped that with average Covid rates in Greater Manchester currently lower than they were in places like London and Liverpool at the moment that they were placed into Tier 2, that the region would be moved down a tier. However, it has been confirmed today that Greater Manchester will stay in Tier 3.
These announcements were made by Matt Hancock in an address to the Commons. The fact that Greater Manchester is recording rates that would have seen it put into Tier 2 at the last review was not even addressed.
Only two areas, Bristol and North Somerset, were moved out of Tier 3 restrictions in the review today.
Following London’s move to Tier 3 this week, more areas in the east and south east such as Portsmouth and Hastings have now been moved up into the highest level of restrictions. Herefordshire was the only area to be moved down to Tier 1, with new restrictions coming into force from 00:01am on Saturday 19 December.
So, the rules for us stay the same for now. There is no mixing of households allowed indoors and a maximum of six people allowed to meet outdoors in specific places. All hospitality venues will remain closed for dine-in customers and can only operate through takeaway, drive-through or delivery. Retail, gyms, personal care and education will remain open.
The tier review comes the day after it was confirmed that the five-day Christmas relaxation will go ahead as planned from 23 to 27 December.
Despite pressures on the government to reverse the laws over to allow up to three households to form a ‘Christmas bubble’, Boris Johnson and Chris Whitty announced yesterday afternoon at a press conference in Downing Street that the rules will not be changed.
However, there was a change of tone yesterday, as the prime minister and Chief Medical Officer encouraged people to have ‘smaller’ and ‘shorter’ gatherings over the five days.
“Have yourself a merry little Christmas, and I’m afraid this year I do mean little,” said Boris Johnson.
For Manchester’s restaurants, cafes, bars and pubs, the tier review had been a small glimmer of hope, but one which faded fast. We spoke to a couple of hospitality venues to see how they’re feeling following the announcement today.
Independent wine shop and bar, Salut, has been operating solely as a shop since Greater Manchester went into the second national lockdown. They had opened previously under former Tier 3 restrictions, serving drinks with a substantial meal.
Sara said “Why don’t we rename England, London? I think what’s happened to us is just unfair and extreme in that our numbers are so low now compared to what they were, compared to what London’s were when they were put back into Tier 2 and what Liverpool’s were when they were put back into Tier 2.
“It feels like they’re getting at Manchester because Andy Burnham stood up to them and if we went back again, I’d want him to stand up for us again but I feel like we’re being punished for it. I think if it was for health reasons, they wouldn’t be allowing families to get together for five days over Christmas. So I don’t think it’s that.
“I think it’s just punishment for the north for standing up to them. But if we had to go back, we’d stand up again, because I tell you what, we will never forget this, we will remember what this government has done to us.
“If it was just for health reasons and everyone was being treated the same, I would be the first to stand up and say ‘I am 100% behind that’, but because it feels like we’re not being treated the same… I don’t believe a word that comes out of their mouth and I don’t believe the reasons that they give us.”
Salut will continue to operate as a wine shop until further notice, with orders available for collection and delivery.
The Feel Good Club opened in October, just a few days before the tier system came into force. And despite not being able to open fully since they launched, the wellbeing cafe has been unable to claim any furlough support.
Kiera Lawlor, owner of Feel Good Club said: “To be honest, with all of the ups and downs we’ve learnt to expect the worst, we braced ourselves for it and we’re trying to stay positive and focus on the things we can do during this time.
“It’s extremely frustrating for us as a business, especially with our struggles being deemed ineligible for furlough we are trying to navigate this period with no support and like many other businesses, having an ever changing plan is wearing thin, preparing the team to come back in and having to plan for every scenario.
“We’re in limbo and just feels so unfair that the north find ourselves in this position with every announcement – feeling gutted to say the least but we get back up and keep adapting.”
The next tier review is expected to be carried out on Wednesday 30 December, with any changes to come into force on January 2, 2021.
We’ll keep you updated on those changes if they happen and in the meantime, we’ll keep sharing all the brilliant and innovative things that hospitality venues are doing to keep ticking over.
