WATCH: Government must listen to councils on lockdown, says Burnham

Andy Burnham has said that the UK has been trying to fight the coronavirus pandemic with a “Whitehall-knows-best approach” and called on the government to listen to council leaders.

In a BBC interview this morning, the Labour mayor of Greater Manchester discussed the decision announced by the government on Friday to ease extended lockdown restrictions, which had been in place across the area until last night.

Burnham described the lifting of restrictions in Bolton and Trafford as “completely illogical”, amid a surge in both of the boroughs, and urged residents of those areas to ignore government advice and follow restrictions instead.

Commenting on the approach from the government, he said: “We’ve got this sort of Whitehall-knows-best approach – well, they don’t and they should listen to what leaders of councils are saying.”

More severe lockdown measures – banning people from different households meeting indoors or in private gardens – were introduced in Manchester and parts of Yorkshire in July after concerns that the virus was being spread between households.

Local authority figures in councils Bolton and Trafford asked on Tuesday that the restrictions be kept in place after reporting a spike in the number of Covid-19 cases. Bolton currently has one of the highest rates in the England.

Burnham added: “Directors of public health should be the most important voice in this, and certainly in both councils yesterday the directors of public health were saying please don’t lift these restrictions.

“It’s frustrating to say the least that we find ourselves in a position this morning where boroughs with rising cases have seen the restrictions lifted overnight – and neighbouring boroughs next door still under the restrictions with much lower cases.”

Bolton has recorded 170 new cases in the week to August 29th – an increase from 53 in the previous week – and now has 59 cases per 100,000 residents, while the rate in Trafford has risen from 19.4 to 35.4 with 84 new cases.