Andy Burnham says it's 'not just about the size of the cheque' as 'government offers Greater Manchester millions' for Tier 3 lockdown

Andy Burnham said he had never known the ambulance service see a major incident during November of the kind it saw on Monday, warning this was ‘the first big sign of what is happening here in our hospitals and the challenge that colleagues are facing’.

Greater Manchester leaders are expecting the latest national lockdown to last longer than expected and remain skeptical about the effect it will have on rising Covid-19 cases.Mayor Andy Burnham and deputy mayor Sir Richard Leese say the success of the lockdown will depend on whether people follow the rules in the four weeks to December 2.Any benefits that arise from the lockdown are unlikely to be felt until after three weeks after it comes into place on Thursday morning, they said.Both leaders

major incident declared in Monday which left the North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) struggling to keep up with calls, the Greater Manchester mayor and former shadow health secretary admitted he had not seen such a crisis before peak winter pressures.

We want to hear how you feel about the new national lockdown and how it will affect you. You can fill out our survey below. Click 'display interactive content' or follow this link if you can't see it on your device. His comments come after a number of scientists that advise the government have said keeping schools open during the November lockdown in England could mean infection rates stay higher for longer than when nationwide restrictions were first introduced in March.Former chief scientific

7am: Andy Burnham describes ultimatum as 'provocative'Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham says it is “provocative” of the Government to tell local leaders they have until midday on Tuesday to agree to Tier 3 restrictions or face unilateral Government action.He tells BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “The late-night ultimatum briefed to the media was a slightly provocative move … but I’m going to try to be positive and respond, and see if we can find a way forward.”8.30am: Accusations that the

It was only at the beginning of October that bars, restaurants and many other business were allowed to reopen in Bolton after struggling through weeks of some of the harshest local lockdown rules in the country. Conservative Bolton Council leader, David Greenhalgh, has slammed the government, saying he feels the package being proposed by Greater Manchester was 'justified due to the disproportionate way Bolton businesses had been affected over the last months'.

hereHe continued: "This is no way to run the country in a national crisis. This is not right.

Andy Burnham has accused the Government of “playing poker with people’s lives” after talks about a Tier 3 deal broke down.The Greater Manchester mayor said that after days of fraught negotiations between the region’s leaders and ministers, the Government “walked away”.Prime Minister Boris Johnson is due to announce new restrictions for the area in Parliament later today after Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick said discussions had failed to produce a deal because leaders were “unwilling to

Boris Johnson will use a 5pm press conference to impose tier-three lockdown measures on Greater Manchester after negotiations with mayor Andy Burnham broke up without a deal.

coronavirus restrictions. The Greater Manchester Mayor said health is 'not just about controlling the virus' and that if 'punishing lockdowns are imposed' over winter, people's mental health will suffer.

Greater Manchester may be offered millions in extra funding to accept the strictest coronavirus restrictions as Boris Johnson seeks to prevent a lockdown revolt and mayor Andy Burnham presses for a Commons vote to break the “impasse”.The Labour mayor was said to have had a “constructive” conversation with the Prime Minister’s chief strategic adviser, Sir Edward Lister, over the weekend and further talks have been scheduled for Monday.Senior Conservatives, including the influential chairman of

all but banned care home visits, Mr Burnham said it was 'essential' that action was taken to help families unable to see their loved ones. However, he also said visits should happen on an 'exceptional basis', and did not clarify how such a system might work or whether it might be imminent.

Andy Burnham has written to the Prime Minister and political leaders in Westminster urging them for a fair financial support deal for areas under the tightest lockdown restrictions. Mr Burnham told Boris Johnson, Sir Keir Starmer and other party leaders that “this is not just a Greater Manchester issue” calling for a consistent new support package for areas under Tier 3 restrictions.

Andy Burnham has accused Boris Johnson of exaggerating the severity of the Covid-19 situation in Greater Manchester.The Prime Minster said that the number of intensive care admissions with the virus were currently at around 40% of the April numbers in the region.Speaking on The Andrew Marr Show on Sunday, Mr Burnham slammed the claims, stating that as of Sunday morning there were around 62 people in the regions ICUs with coronavirus - compared with around 200-220 at the previous peak.He added

Andy Burnham has hit back after a group of 20 Tory MPs begged him to back down in his fight with the government over Tier 3 restrictions.MPs from areas such as Norfolk, Lincolnshire, Herefordshire and Cambridgeshire sent the Mayor a letter saying they are 'deeply worried' about the prospect of another national lockdown.They therefore urged the Mayor to 'engage with the government's regional approach' which would offer some 'protection' to constituencies such as theirs where coronavirus rates are

an incandescent and inconclusive meeting with Downing Street on the previous Friday evening.

message was clear to Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham and his colleagues.If an agreement cannot be reached, Mr Johnson said he would intervene to 'to protect Manchester's hospitals and save the lives of Manchester's residents'."I urge the mayor to reconsider and engage constructively," he said."I cannot stress enough, time is of the essence.Get the latest updates from across Greater Manchester direct to your inbox with the free MEN newsletterYou can sign up very simply by following the