PEOPLE across the North East are waiting to find out whether or not Covid restrictions here will be relaxed before Christmas.
The government is today reviewing the tier system of coronavirus restrictions in England, with all parts of the North East currently sitting in the ‘Very High’ Tier 3 alert category.
Council leaders from Newcastle, Gateshead, Northumberland, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, Sunderland, County Durham, and the Tees Valley area met with government officials and local government secretary Robert Jenrick last Friday to discuss the tier system.
And local council sources have said they do not expect the region to be allowed to drop down to Tier 2, despite infection rates having fallen considerably in most parts of the North East over the past few weeks. As of today, upper Teesdale had a rolling rate of 97.2 cases per 100,000 - well below the national average. Barnard Castle's figure was also well below the average at 82.7, but Staindrop, Cockfield and Evenwood was above the average at 196.4.
Staying in Tier 3 would mean that pubs, bars, and restaurants would have to remain shut, as would entertainment venues like cinemas and theatres. Football fans would also not be allowed back into stadiums if the North East remains under the strictest Covid measures.
MP Dehenna Davison told the House of Commons this month it was “almost impossible to justify” putting upper Teesdale in Tier 3 because of its low number of virus cases over a long period. She called for a more local breakdown, echoing the request of other MPs in the south of England.
When will an announcement be made?
While the review of the tiers is being held today, a government announcement on whether areas have moved up or down is currently not expected until Thursday – although sources have said that MPs may be briefed on the decisions affecting their area at some point on Wednesday.
Any changes will come into force on Saturday, December 19, but would only be in place for a few days until the Christmas bubble rules begin on December 23.
The tier system will then return on December 28, once the five-day Christmas relaxation ends.
London and other parts of the South East have already moved into Tier 3 today after a major spike in cases.
The government has also faced calls from experts to scrap a five-day relaxation of Covid restrictions over Christmas, with two leading medical journals warning it will “cost many lives”.
What are the latest infection rates?
According to data published by Newcastle City Council, the infection rate in the North East is now 159 new weekly cases per 100,000 people – which has increased slightly in recent days but is below the national average of 193.
On the day that the North East was placed into Tier 3, November 26, the region’s infection rate was 254 per 100,000.
South Tyneside has by far the highest infection rate among the LA7 group of councils, while Gateshead has the lowest.
Here is the latest list of infection rates and weekly case numbers, calculated by the PA news agency based on Public Health England data.
From left to right, it reads: name of local authority; rate of new cases in the seven days to December 11; number (in brackets) of new cases recorded in the seven days to December 11; rate of new cases in the seven days to December 4; number (in brackets) of new cases recorded in the seven days to December 4.
- South Tyneside, 306.7, (463), 206.0, (311)
- Northumberland, 163.4, (527), 161.3, (520)
- County Durham, 153.6, (814), 147.0, (779)
- Sunderland, 148.7, (413), 166.7, (463)
- Newcastle upon Tyne, 133.7, (405), 121.5, (368)
- North Tyneside, 124.6, (259), 147.2, (306)
- Gateshead, 92.5, (187), 96.5, (195)
The Department of Health said decisions on tier levels are based on a number of factors – including case detection rates, particularly among the over 60s, how quickly case rates are rising or falling, and pressure on NHS services.
