Scotland warns against all travel to north of England after lockdown reimposed
The Scottish government has warned against all non-essential travel to Greater Manchester and other parts of northern England after ministers imposed lockdown restrictions on the area.
First minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “I strongly advise anyone planning to travel to areas affected in the north of England, or anyone planning to travel to Scotland from those same areas, to cancel their plans.”
Overnight over 4m people in the north of England were ordered not to mix with people outside of their household after a surge in infections.
However, they will still be able to go to the pub and to work.
The new measures were announced by tweet with just two hours notice at 9pm last night, after a meeting between health secretary Matt Hancock and local leaders. They will be reviewed on a weekly basis.
The last-minute announcement was met with stiff criticism from across the political spectrum for its timing.
Greater Manchester, east Lancashire and parts of West Yorkshire are covered by the new restrictions, which the government said it would write into law.
Today Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that the easing of restrictions at “higher risk” settings including sports venues, casinos, leisure centres and weddings will be paused following a sharp spike in coronavirus cases.
In a press conference, he said that plans to reopen leisure centres, casinos, skating rinks and bowling alleys will now be pushed back until at least 15 August.
“We should now squeeze that brake pedal,” said Johnson. “I’m really sorry about that but we simply cannot take the risk.”
The move marks a sharp U-turn in plans to ease lockdown measures, amid mounting fears of a second wave of coronavirus across the globe.