‘Act everyday as if we are already in Tier 2’: Council leader’s warning to Northamptonshire residents

The leader of Northampton Borough Council is urging local residents to ‘act as if we are already in Tier 2’.

Speaking at the weekly press conference today (October 30), Councillor Jonathan Nunn reiterated his point from last week that he would not be surprised if the Government moves the county to the ‘high’ tier.

The warning comes as the data released this week referring to the week ending October 23, confirms more than 1,000 new Covid-19 cases, with the county-wide case rate per 100,000 of the population reaching 133.7.

Despite the rising case rates, Northamptonshire remains in the lowest level of lockdown, meaning household are allowed to mix indoors and outdoors, up to six people providing social distancing measures can be implemented.

Lucy Wightman, director of Public Health Northamptonshire, has however said once again that ‘just because you can mix under these rules, doesn’t mean you should’, a sentiment which is mirrored by Councillor Nunn.

The leader of Northampton Borough Council said: “There have been huge efforts across the county but the sad fact is 1,000 more people have contracted this virus and that just shows what a dreadful situation this is.

“The Government guidelines are absolute limits, they are not safe practice.

“It is not safe to have five people come into your house, it’s safer to be on your own.

“We see the likes of Oxford and Nottinghamshire going into higher tiers, but it is a complicated process and it is not a simple mathematical process.

“We are very close and I would not be surprised if we are not moved up a tier.

“The Government has the opportunity to do that and we would have to accept that at such a time they choose to do it.

“We have to accept that it’s when rather than if.

“We need to act as if we are in Tier 2 or 3 at the moment, this is the best way to keep everyone safe and stop the county from going into a higher lockdown.

“If we act like we are in Tier 2 already then it will save lives, save suffering and save illness. Let’s not relax.”

Both Councillor Nunn and Councillor Tom Beattie - the leader of Corby Borough Council - also confirmed they believe that ‘when not if’ there is a higher lockdown imposed, which would mean at least no mixing of households indoors, it will be for the whole county and the towns will not move separately.

Lucy Wightman also explained that she is expecting guidance from the Government next week about the threshold between tiers, which should provide more clarity as to why Northamptonshire is not in a higher tier and when it may be moved.

To find out what else happened in this week’s press conference, visit the live blog.

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