Covid: Government urged to rule out Blackburn lockdown

Surge vaccinations have been taking place in the Blackburn with Darwen area

Blackburn with Darwen's council leaders have urged the health secretary to rule out a local lockdown over concerns about Covid-19 Indian variant cases.

On Monday, Matt Hancock said local restrictions could be implemented to stop the variant spreading.

In a letter to Mr Hancock, council leader Mohammed Khan said lockdowns were not a "sustainable solution".

It came as the borough and surrounding Lancashire areas all saw a rise in infection rates.

The rate in Blackburn with Darwen has risen to 145 cases per 100,000 people in the week leading up to 15 May, making it the second highest rate in England behind Bolton, where the rate stands at 319.9 cases per 100,000 people.

Burnley, Chorley, Hyndburn, Preston and Pendle have all also seen local infection rates rise in the same period, though all stand at rates below 61 cases per 100,000 people.

Surge testing and surge vaccinations have taken place in Bolton and Blackburn where the spike in cases has been linked to the variant.

One thousand extra vaccines a day have been made available in Blackburn with Darwen to and all adults in the area have been urged to book a vaccine.

The health secretary said almost 14,000 vaccinations had been given in Bolton and Blackburn since Friday

The Local Democracy Reporting Service said the letter, signed by Mr Khan, the authority's chief executive Denise Park and public health director Prof Dominic Harrison, had called on the government to "completely remove [local lockdowns] as a possible intervention".

It said the area's residents had been "playing their part more than any other area of the country for 12 months and it's taking its toll".

"A return to a tiered system or local restrictions would have a terrible impact on our residents, businesses and communities," it said.

"Lockdowns will not provide a sustainable solution to rising rates in areas of high risk or with surges in variants."

It added that the area's leaders were focusing on schools and colleges "to ensure they have the best advice and continue to wear masks" and exploring other measures to ensure "the freedoms coming with the latest stage of the roadmap do not lead to problems and disruption".

The health secretary said almost 14,000 vaccinations had been given in Bolton and Blackburn since Friday and more than 26,000 had been given in the past week - the highest weekly total in the two areas.

He also said surge testing was being introduced in Burnley, where the infection rate more than doubled in the week up to 15 May with 60.7 cases per 100,000 people.

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