Boris Johnson is expected to make an announcement on the status of the local lockdown measures in the North West of England and Leicester, which were hastily introduced last week. Residents in Preston are braced to see further restrictions imposed, after a rise in coronavirus infections.
Officials in Preston have urged residents in the Lancashire city to avoid having visitors in their homes, though no official rules have yet been introduced.
Preston City Council said evidence from Public Health England showed a spike of coronavirus cases in Preston, with the majority of the spread through households and community.
The council’s chief executive Adrian Phillips said officials were aware the coronavirus was spreading via “community transmissions” across the city.
Last Thursday Matt Hancock announced on Twitter that lockdown restrictions would be tightened in Greater Manchester, parts of West Yorkshire and East Lancashire and will take effect immediately.
The new rules banned people in separate households from meeting indoors.
When announcing the new lockdown restrictions, Mr Hancock said the new spike in infections were largely caused by people not abiding by social distancing rules.
The Government was criticised for announcing the new measures on social media, and for giving little notice to residents.
Last weekend Greater Manchester declared a major incident as coronavirus infections continued to soar.
Huge spikes were recorded in Manchester, Tameside and Oldham.
Having now declared a major incident, the city can access extra national resources – such as the army – if it becomes necessary.
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