Covid: Over 90 fines issued in South Yorkshire at weekend

Over 1,400 suspected Covid regulation breaches had been reported in South Yorkshire since 5 January, police said

Police in South Yorkshire were called to 295 incidents of Covid regulations being broken last weekend, including several large gatherings and parties.

As a result, 93 Fixed Penalty Notices were issued, worth a total of £18,600, with 72 of those fines being for indoor gatherings or large groups.

Most people were "making sacrifices" but their efforts were being "sabotaged" by a few, the force said.

Fines for flouting Covid lockdown rules start at £200 in England.

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Fifteen people were issued Fixed Penalty Notices totalling about £3,000 after they attended a party at the weekend in Scotland Street, Sheffield, officers said.

Supt Paul McCurry said: "We know it is not easy to be apart from friends and loved ones, but sadly house parties and similar gatherings provide the greatest risk to public health.

"For this reason it is only right this is where we focus our attention."

'Ignore the rules'

People know the rules and most are "making sacrifices" to stick to them, Supt McCurry said.

"We need to ensure the efforts of the majority are not sabotaged by the few people who continue to ignore the rules," he added.

Since 5 January, there have been over 1,400 reports of suspected breaches of Covid-19 regulations in South Yorkshire, the force said.

The rules in England say people must only leave home for limited reasons, such as food shopping, exercise, or work if they cannot do so from home.