MPs vote for taskforce to tackle cladding crisis as Manchester's Lucy Powell calls it 'a national scandal'

direct to your inboxCoronavirus has brought heartache to thousands of families across Greater Manchester.More than 5,200 people have died in our region's hospitals alone. And tragically, this number is continuing to rise.

direct to your inboxThe NHS has confirmed the deaths of 18 more patients in hospitals in Greater Manchester who had tested positive for coronavirus.Nationally, a further 309 hospital deaths were reported on Thursday.Of those, 42 were in hospitals in the north west region.Six further deaths have been recorded at Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, with five more at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust.Three further deaths were recorded at Bolton NHS Foundation Trust and at Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh

hereBury's rate increased by a single case.Oldham and Wigan also has a higher rate than yesterday, but cases are still down when the figures are compared with the previous week.The national average in England is 137.4 cases per 100,000 of the population.Manchester and Trafford recorded the highest week-on-week fall in cases.Bolton has the highest infection rate in Greater Manchester - at 236.1 cases per 100,000.Trafford - on 137.8 cases - has the lowest.Of the 315 local areas in England, 16 (5

straight to your inbox every day for freeManchester United's Under-23s were once again in the spotlight on Friday night as they beat Arsenal 3-0. There has been plenty of clamour about United's latest crop of exciting youngsters, no more so than because of Amad's performance for the youth side.

direct to your inboxStudents at the University of Manchester are to hold a historic vote of 'no confidence' in the Vice-Chancellor Nancy Rothwell.Campaigners were granted the right to a referendum from 8-11 March following a series of controversies surrounding the university's handling of the pandemic this academic year.The vote, thought to be the first of its kind in the university's history, will ask students if they wish to declare they no longer have confidence in the Vice-Chancellor and her

straight to your inbox every day for freeMason Greenwood was substituted in the second-half against West Ham because Manchester United are managing his game-time.Greenwood, 19, has started in six of United's last seven matches but was replaced by Edinson Cavani in the 86th minute, much to the surprise of many observers who felt he had performed better than fellow forwards Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial.Martial was starting for the first time in four games but failed to score while

direct to your inboxCharlotte Dawson is never shy when it comes to posting on social media.So it's no surprise that the new mum has been praised for sharing her latest video.Charlotte welcomed baby boy Noah on January 26 with fiancé Matt Sarsfield.The 28-year-old reality star, daughter of the late Manchester comic Les Dawson, has been enjoying her 'baby bubble' and sharing updates on the newborn.In Charlotte's brilliant new post, she proudly declares she's "embracing her postpartum jelly belly

straight to your inbox every day for freeFormer Manchester United midfielder Roy Keane has made it clear that isn't a fan of silly celebrations in modern football, so FIFA 21 Ultimate Team players have taken it upon themselves to make his virtual player do some of the silliest celebrations on the game, with hilarious results.

direct to your inboxGreater Manchester Police say they are investigating a video involving a man who 'appears to be struck by a police officer' in Burnage.Officers had been responding to reports of a coronavirus breach of '100 people in a café' on Burnage Lane on Sunday afternoon (February 7).Police said the incident occurred as they were arresting a 38-year-old man on suspicion of assault and resisting arrest.The video, which has been widely circulated on social media shows a man being

Former Coronation Street star Lucy-Jo Hudson lives in Manchester with her boyfriend Lewis Devine and two children.The cosy family home boasts a stylish interior, chic furniture and a huge playroom for seven-year-old Sienna-Rae and baby Carter Ray, 11 months. Let’s take a sneak peek around the home that they share.

Sign up to the M.E.N.'s Manchester Family newsletter for all the latest from school closures to ways to entertain the kidsBoris Johnson has refused to bow to pressure over when schools should reopen.The Prime Minister has currently set a date of March 8, as the earliest point at which schools in England could open again.His decision has led to a backlash from some Tory MPs, who argue that given the success of the vaccine, lockdown could be eased sooner.It comes as the Scottish First Minister,

straight to your inbox every day for freeManchester United's game against Southampton got off to a heated start as Alexandre Jankewitz was sent off just over 70 seconds into the match due to a horror tackle on Scott McTominay.The Southampton youngster was making just his second senior appearance when he flew into a tackle on McTominay in the middle of the pitch, going over the ball and catching the United midfielder on his thigh.Referee Mike Dean immediately brandished a red card for the

direct to your inboxOn Friday morning, Director of Public Health David Regan and Dr Manish Kumar, Executive Medical Director and Manchester Health and Care Commissioning joined MEN Political Editor Jen Williams in a live Q&A session.Broadcast over Facebook, the pair fielded a host of questions from the people of Greater Manchester about Covid-19, the rollout of the vaccine across the region, and the efforts being taken by chiefs to keep the virus under control.The interview focused on questions

One of the biggest stories to come out of the gaming world last year was the disastrous rollout of Cyberpunk 2077. The hugely-anticipated game was expected to be a huge hit, both critically and commerically, but gamers began reporting bizarre glitches such as cars randomly turning into soda machines and eventually developers CD Projekt took the game off the market until it was fixed.

straight to your inbox every day for freeThe games are still coming thick and fast and Manchester United are back in action on Wednesday as Sheffield United visit Old Trafford.United go into the game full of confidence after beating Liverpool in the FA Cup on Sunday and having not lost in the Premier League in 13 matches.The players were back in training at the start of the week ahead of the Blades' visit.

Paris Jackson’s latest music video is a stunner.