The government is being urged not to bring in further restrictions on pubs, bars, restaurants and other hospitality venues in Birmingham.

Image source, PA Media

The leader of the city council, Ian Ward, said the spread of coronavirus in the city appeared to be mainly through private gatherings and in workplaces that did not have social distancing measures.

He told a regional briefing the hospitality sector "was not a major source of infection" and the council would lobby against any further restrictions as long as that remained the case.

Last month, the government told hospitality venues in England they had to close at 22:00 and only have table service to help stop the spread of Covid-19.

Her barrister says she has been "vindicated" after winning a tribunal against Jaguar Land Rover.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Grinshill Animal Rescue in Shropshire is applying to move to a new base at Whixall.

The charity, which has been operating for more than 50 years, said the new site would have kennel spaces for 20 dogs and a cattery for up to eight cats.

It took in more than 100 dogs and cats in 2019 at its current rented premises in Grinshill.

The number of people with coronavirus needing intensive care at Wolverhampton's New Cross Hospital is small and "pretty stable right now", according to bosses.

Image source, Google

Simon Evans, from the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, told a regional briefing today there were fewer than 10 patients in their intensive care unit (ICU) and the figure had "stayed around that for two to three weeks".

He said staff had been working to learn lessons from earlier in the year which had included having sufficient capacity to cope if numbers rose.

Planning included building two additional wards in the past two months and retraining staff to allow them to adapt to different circumstances.

BBC local radio has agreed a new, two-year deal to broadcast commentary of National League games.

The BBC’s local radio stations already provide commentary, analysis and pre and post-match shows for most Premier League and EFL games each week.

Image source, Getty Images

The deal will mean coverage of 67 teams in total - 24 in the National League, 22 in National League North and 21 in National League South.

The number of new cases of coronavirus in the West Midlands appears to be plateauing, according to health officials.

Image source, Reuters

Clive Wright, from the Department of Health and Social Care, told a regional briefing today the overall rate of infection had come down but "we must not get complacent".

He revealed the figures from Tuesday and then from Thursday for every 100,000 which show:

• Birmingham - from 146.3 to 139.2
• Coventry - from 66.3 to 71.2
• Dudley - from 45.2 to 52.5
• Sandwell - from 113.3 to 107.5
• Solihull - from 75.8 to 79.6
• Walsall - from 78.7 to 72.7
• Wolverhampton - from 76.3 to 74.8

The number of tests being carried out in the region has increased from 30,000 in the week up to 17 September to 42,000 in the last week.

Further restrictions were introduced last month in Birmingham, Sandwell, Solihull and Wolverhampton banning households from mixing.

Mr Wright said the chance of restrictions being eased in the near future was "unlikely" but they might happen it "we continue to go in the right direction".

Rail passengers are being advised to think twice about travelling this weekend, because of the high winds and rain brought by Storm Alex.

There will be a speed limit of 50mph on trains, which means there will be fewer running and journeys will take longer.

There is also the risk of flooding on the tracks and signalling systems may be affected.

West Midlands Railway said it aimed to run as many trains as possible for as long as it can, but only while it remained safe to do so.

BBC Radio Stoke Sport

Crewe Alexandra haven't had any approaches for their players ahead of Monday's transfer deadline, manager David Artell has said.

He said some of his players would be allowed to leave on loan, but there'd been no interest in them either.

Image source, Getty Images

Artell also said there were some key players, such as Charlie Kirk and Ryan Wintle who won't be allowed to go.

The mother and sister of a judo champion who was found dead in woodlands near the Wrekin are taking part in the virtual London Marathon.

June and Tina Fallon are raising money for mental health charity Mind after Craig Fallon, 36, died in July last year.

His sister Tina described him as a fantastic fighter and the sort of competitor who did not just want to win, but someone who wanted to win well.

Image source, Getty Images

She said she and her mother would be walking, not running, the route so they could have time to talk and reflect.

"The Wrekin is vast area of amazing beauty," she said.

"You have to put a little bit of work in to get the top but when you get there it is breathtaking – it is loved by sports people, dog walkers, couples having a romanic walk.

"You could see why someone like my brother would love it so much."

Image source, Family handout

They are doing it for Mind so other people can be helped, she said.

"I want people to know there are people there for you. It can't always be someone close to you but the people at Mind are always there and do amazing job," she said.

Mr Fallon had been the head coach of the Welsh Judo Association and a winner of multiple gold medals.

This year's London Marathon is being done remotely by 45,000 people.

Storm Alex has already started to batter some parts of the UK and is set to make itself felt in the Midlands tomorrow.

A Met Office Amber warning is in force from Saturday afternoon into Sunday. The forecaster says heavy rain is likely to bring flash floods.

Image source, PA Media

Parts of the South West have seen a series of power cuts today, but the Met Office said strong winds were expected to largely drop by the end of today.

However, Shropshire, Herefordshire and Wales are expected to see some of the country's heaviest rainfall on Saturday and Sunday.

BBC Weather Watchers

We've had some lovely wet weather photos shared by the BBC Weather Watchers today.

This cow was photographed near Redditch by a contributor using the nickname OgySnaps and the wet Hereford city centre picture below was taken by StepCounter.

Image source, OgySnaps

Image source, StepCounter

A 135-year-old GPs surgery in Whitchurch is going to close at the end of March next year.

The Shopshire Clinical Commissioning Group said the Dodington practice was closing because the GPs there, Dr Ruth Clayton and Dr Andrew Rogers, had decided to retire.

The Clayton family has been working at the surgery since 1943, when the current doctor's grandfather Dr Edgar Clayton took over.

Image source, Google

The surgery was originally set to merge with Churchmere Medical Practice and become part of the new proposed medical centre at Pauls Moss, but that was delayed due to a judicial review.

The Shropshire CCG said it still felt this was the best option and is "working hard to find a solution".

Balvinder Gahir was found with serious head injuries at a property in Leamington Spa in August.

An amber weather warning has been issued for the weekend, covering Herefordshire, Shropshire and parts of Worcestershire and Cheshire.

The latest Met Office warning says heavy rain is expected to bring some flooding and travel disruption from Saturday night into Sunday.

It said homes and businesses could be affected and some communities could be cut off.

Image source, Met Office

A less serious yellow alert also covers Staffordshire, the West Midlands and Warwickshire.

The West Midlands has been badly affected by flash floods in recent months.

In August, Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service said it hadreceived more than 100 emergency calls in just two hours.

The gathering was the latest of several breaches of Covid-19 rules at the hotel, police say.

Hereford Times

Here are three stories from the Hereford Times today:

• Pensioner tried to pay child for sex, external
• Resurfacing work forces road closures, external
• Timber firm helped school with new classroom, external

A section of the A50 in Stoke-on-Trent has been closed for several hours today, after the death of a man.

The westbound carriageway has reopened but it remains closed eastbound between Longton and Normacott.

Image source, Staffordshire Police

Staffordshire Police said officers were called out to an area near Longton at 09:00 and officers are still at the scene.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

A Birmingham night club has had its licence suspended after police discovered between 50 and 70 people attending a party in August.

Nakira nightclub, on Suffolk Street, was also found operating past the curfew on 26 September.

Image source, Google

A full review will be held within 28 days and it could have its licence removed permanently.

The chair of the city council's Licensing Sub Committee, Councillor Philip Davis, said it was "potentially a matter of life or death".

"It is clear that Nakira’s management failed to follow government guidance and the club was operating with no regard for social distancing or public health."

The bar owner had previously claimed officers had been mistaken when they visited in August, and that there were 15-20 people inside and 50-60 people outside the venue.

He said also staff had been doing maintenance in September when people began entering via the back door.

BBC Radio Shropshire Sport

Harry Burgoyne will get the chance to play in goal for Shrewsbury Town tomorrow and said his selection had given him a lot of confidence.

The first-choice goalkeeper, Matija Sarkich, has been ruled out for three months with a hamstring injury, so Burgoyne will play against Gillingham tomorrow.

Image source, Getty Images

Shrewsbury are yet to win a game in League One this season, while Gillingham come in to the game off the back of two straight wins.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Wolverhampton’s New Cross Hospital is going to get a new MRI scanner, to help meet growing demand.

Image source, RPS Group

The city council has granted planning permission for it to be set up in the car park, next to the Radiology unit, in a demountable building.

The planning application said the MRI unit would be in operation between 08:00 and 20:00, Monday to Friday.