Coronavirus: major incident declared in Greater Manchester

Local authorities and senior figures from GMP met over the weekend to discuss the region's spike over the past week

A major incident has been declared in Greater Manchester after the recent rises in coronavirus infection rates.

Local authorities and senior figures from GMP met over the weekend to discuss the region's spike over the past week.

Police say residents should not be alarmed and insist the decision was made so that the region can have access to extra national resources if needed.

The new restrictions ban separate households from meeting each other at home or mixing in pubs, restaurants and other hospitality venues.

Leader of Manchester City Council Richard Leese said: "People should not be alarmed that a major incident has been declared.

"This is standard practice for complex situations which require a multi-agency response.

"Although the council and partner organisations have been working closely to tackle the impacts of the pandemic since early this year, declaring a major incident means we can ramp this up further.

"It allows the establishment of a central command structure to oversee the response and enables agencies involved to draw on extra resources."

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Combined Authority said that the declaration of a major incident was "no more than a boost to our capabilities".

"It is absolutely appropriate for us to maximise our resources in the drive to reverse the spike in infection which we have witnessed in the last seven to 10 days," he said.

"The more we stick to the new guidelines and drive the R rate down, the quicker they will be removed."

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