Nottingham Covid surge: Government told to act

The government has been told to act without any more delays after it was announced Nottingham has the highest Covid-19 infection rate in the UK.

Figures show that 689.1 per 100,000 people tested positive in the city over the past week, but restrictions are not due to be announced until Monday.

Local leaders said the lack of action was unacceptable and urged people not to wait for the announcement.

The government told residents to follow "the advice of the local authority".

Leaked documents show that Nottinghamshire is expected to go into level two of a new "three-tier" system next week, with rules coming into effect on Wednesday, but many have questioned the delay.

Alex Norris, Nottingham North Labour MP and shadow minister for public health, said: "We need action, and we need action today, and instead we are going to wait until next Wednesday for it.

"I'm really worried that tonight [Friday] and Saturday night, such busy nights, people are going to try and get one last 'hurrah' in.

"We ask them to not do this, but that will be the cost of slow action."

Nottingham City Council leader David Mellen said the government's "delay... makes no sense", while Nottingham South MP Lilian Greenwood said it was "reckless and indefensible".

Mark Spencer , Sherwood MP and the government's chief whip, said there would be an announcement in parliament next week.

He told BBC Radio Nottingham: "It takes time to organise these rules and make sure they are enforceable and deliverable and they are at the right level.

"You can't just make a law up, you have to go through a process which is fairly long-winded to make sure you can deliver that.

"We don't need the government to tell us what to do. We know what to do which is to keep our distance from people, not mix in people's houses, make sure we wear our masks, keep washing our hands.

"We can protect ourselves and act responsibly as a society."

Conservative MPs from the north of Nottinghamshire, where cases are much lower, have voiced their own concerns.

Ashfield MP Lee Anderson said people living in the area, where the infection rate was lower at 100.8 per 100,000, should not be "penalised" because the rate was high in Nottingham city centre.

Mansfield MP Ben Bradley said he did not want additional measures imposed in the town "unless they are totally necessary". Currently the rate stands at 67.7 per 100,000.

The Department of Health and Social Care said it was "vital" that everyone continued to practise social distancing, wear face coverings, and get tested if they exhibited symptoms.

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