No businesses to shut in Burnley as 'tier two' restrictions confirmed for town

Businesses in Burnley will remain open after it was confirmed the town would be placed under a 'tier two' lockdown.
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Earlier today, Prime Minister Boris Johnson unveiled a new three-tier strategy aimed at suppressing Covid-19.

Under the new arrangements:

– The medium alert level will cover most of England and will consist of the current national measures, including the rule of six and the 10pm curfew.

Burnley has been placed under a 'tier two' lockdown.Burnley has been placed under a 'tier two' lockdown.
Burnley has been placed under a 'tier two' lockdown.
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– The high alert level, which Burnley has been placed in, reflects interventions in many areas subject to local restrictions, preventing mixing between different households indoors.

– The very high alert level will mean, at a minimum, the closure of pubs and bars and a ban on social mixing indoors and in private gardens.

Areas in the top tier will be able to impose extra restrictions, such as in the Liverpool city region where leisure centres, gyms, betting shops and casinos have closed.

Burnley MP Antony Higginbotham said: "What the measures don't mean is that any businesses in Burnley have to close. So, whether you're a bar, a restaurant, a hairdresser or anything, you can still stay open. That's really important and something I've been discussing with ministers across the weekend, because that is important to protect our local economy.

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"The tier we're in is that middle tier - the 'high' tier - where the virus is spreading and it's higher than the national average, but it's not yet at a measure where we need to close down parts of the economy.

"So, what that means for us is that by law you shouldn't be meeting in pubs, bars, restaurants or your own home with other households. For the last couple of weeks that's been guidance, but from Wednesday that becomes law.

"I know this is concerning for people but the key thing for us now is that when we change from 'tier two' we go down to that medium tier in the right direction with the virus coming down rather than going up a tier to 'tier three'.

"The way we do that is by sticking to the rules, making sure we avoid meeting with other households indoors and always remembering hands, face, space."