BREAKING: Greater Manchester's Covid rate dips below national average - days before Tier 2 decision

direct to your inboxThe streets were empty as Greater Manchester said goodbye to 2020 and ushered in a new year - but many were determined to keep alive at least one tradition.Our video from Werneth Low shows how many parts of Greater Manchester were ablaze with colour as people set off fireworks at midnight to celebrate the arrival of 2021.Around 200 socially distanced people gathered on the popular spot to watch the moment our region said goodbye to 2020 and ushered in the New Year.Car horns

direct to your inboxIt has been a year like no other.However Great Mancunians have still made headlines across the world, for all sorts of reasons.Here we look at those who have put the region on the map in 2020, a year we will never forget.2020 has undoubtedly belonged to Manchester United and England star Marcus Rashford.However it is his incredible work off the pitch which has made the headlines, even more than his impressive goal-scoring feats on it.The Withington-born and Wythenshawe raised

direct to your inboxWhen the new term starts next week for primary schools, headteacher Ruth Vayro knows some parents will keep their children at home."Our families do trust us at St Ambrose to keep children safe but I'm sure some parents will take the decision not to return their children to school because they just don't know."Parents will be concerned just as they are in London and Greater London."I completely empathise with parents - I'm a parent.

direct to your inbox"It's absolutely gut-wrenching."Hair salon owner Jane Nixon describes how she felt as Matt Hancock announced that Greater Manchester would be moving into Tier 4.And it's a feeling thousands of business owners across the region will be familiar with.A change in restrictions, businesses finally being allowed to open then being forced to shut again just a few weeks later.

direct to your inboxDoctors and paramedics say they are bracing themselves for a new tide of Covid patients to hit Greater Manchester's hospitals within weeks. Speaking as plans for the region's move to Tier 4 were announced and the return to school for secondary pupils was delayed, Dr Carole Gavin, a consultant in Greater Manchester, said concerns were growing as hospitals in the south battle to find beds as infection rates - largely found to be caused by the new mutant strain - rise.

direct to your inboxA Greater Manchester Police chief has urged people to stay at home in Tier 4 tomorrow night instead of celebrating New Year's Eve as they normally would. Under Tier 4 coronavirus restrictions, people are required by law to remain at home unless they need to leave their home for essential reasons.

Sign up for the latest from M.E.N.

What do you think? Have your say in our comments below "I think the general thought is with Covid, yes, we've got some things wrong."But most people get that with a global pandemic that's constantly evolving, you're going to make mistakes."There is a lot of sympathy out there, but we were already in a very polarised atmosphere previously and unfortunately, it's become even more polarised."Every mistake is now a political choice as opposed to something you've realised in hindsight just wasn't

direct to your inboxIt wasn't quite the white Christmas we see in all those festive movies.But there was a dusting of snow across Greater Manchester on Christmas Day.However, things quickly turned to strong winds and heavy rain as Storm Bella began its approach on Boxing Day.The Met Office has since issued a yellow weather warning for snow and ice beginning at 6pm tonight (Sunday) into Monday morning.Therefore sleet, snow and flooding is all expected in parts of Greater Manchester as the extreme

direct to your inboxForecasters have posted three flood alerts across Greater Manchester as Storm Bella wreaks havoc in parts of the country.People in communities in Trafford, Stockport and Tameside close to the River Mersey valley and also residents in Oldham, Bolton and Rochdale in the River Irk catchment have been urged to be prepared for possible flooding.Met Office forecasters have warned that Storm Bella could bring 70mph winds and heavy rain to parts of the UK on Saturday, with the worst

direct to your inboxIt could be a rough day across Greater Manchester tomorrow as forecasters warn of extreme weather.The Met Office has issued alerts for strong winds and heavy rain, alongside a weather warning for snow and ice in Greater Manchester as Storm Bella sweeps across the country.Temperatures are expected to reach no higher than 3°C across most of the region on Sunday but the windchill will make the conditions feel much colder.Forecasters say icy surfaces are likely in much of Greater

direct to your inboxIt's not something that happens very often on Christmas Day - snow actually falling.But yesterday, parts of our region witnessed the magical white stuff fall from the sky after a terrible year.What will the weather do today, on Boxing Day, as Storm Bella sweeps in?Here's our hour by hour guide to the forecast today.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 instructions

direct to your inboxLike this entire year, Christmas Day in 2020 is anything but normal.It's a restricted, and for some quite sad time.But Greater Mancunians did have something to smile about today...

direct to your inboxStorm Bella is set to bring heavy rain and strong winds to Greater Manchester on Boxing Day.The Met Office have issued a series of weather warnings ahead of the storm's arrival on Saturday afternoon (26 December).An amber severe weather warning has been issued for parts of south Wales and across southern England, with gusts expected to reach up to 60 to 70mph in some places.Storm Bella is likely to bring disruption to travel and utilities, the forecaster's alert said.In

direct to your inboxStorm Bella has officially been named as strong winds and heavy rain are forecast for Boxing Day.The Met Office has said Christmas Day will be relativity calm and cold, but conditions across the UK will turn increasingly unsettled through Saturday and into Sunday. An amber weather warning has been issued for parts of south Wales and across southern England, with gusts expected to reach up to 60-70mph in exposed coastal locations.

direct to your inboxTwo men from Greater Manchester who won £20,000 on the hit BBC show Race Across the World have donated their prize money to charity.Emon Choudhury, 36, from Stockport, beat four other teams to win the race alongside his nephew Jamiul Choudhury, 25, from Oldham.The pair beat the odds to complete an epic 54-day journey from Mexico City to the south of Argentina for the second series of the BBC2 show.On their travels, the men were visibly moved by the number of homeless children

direct to your inboxAll ten boroughs of Greater Manchester are now registering a lower coronavirus infection rate than the national average - although rates are increasing in some boroughs.The latest NHS data released today (Thursday) revealed 218.8 positive tests for every 100,000 people during the week to December 13 across England, an increase of 39 per cent compared to the previous week.Much of that spike is associated with a significant increase in cases in London, which registered 358.7

direct to your inboxTameside now has the most places with hardly any cases of Covid-19 in Greater Manchester.The borough’s council boss says the explanation is simple – everyone has ‘played their part’.The latest hyper-local neighbourhood data shows that there are five areas of the borough which saw two or fewer cases in the last week.Ashton North, Audenshaw, Hurst Cross, Denton East and Dukinfield West all saw either two, one or no new infections in the seven days to December 11 according to

direct to your inboxThe mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham has slammed the government’s decision to keep the region under the toughest coronavirus restrictions.Speaking on BBC Radio Manchester this afternoon, he said: “The average for all of Greater Manchester is lower than Liverpool and London when they went into tier 2.“I don’t think they’ve got the balance right at all here, so I understand the frustration, but let’s not take it out on the NHS.“We’ve got to follow those rules and it

direct to your inboxCoronavirus has brought heartache to thousands of families across Greater Manchester.More than 3,800 people have died in our region's hospitals alone. And tragically, this number is continuing to rise.Behind the Covid-19 death statistics that we publish each day are human beings who all had stories to tell.