Around 14 million people living in the Sheffield city area will be subject to the toughest coronavirus restrictions in England after local leaders agree a deal with the government, a confirmed the mayor of the metro, Dan Jarvis
The South Yorkshire region – which covers Sheffield, Rotherham, Doncaster and Barnsley – has secured a total of £ 41million from the government in return for shutting down pubs and other businesses The package includes £ 11million sterling for improved testing and tracing and local enforcement and £ 30million to support businesses impacted by level 3 restrictions
Jarvis said: “We have called on the government to provide a local lifeline for our local authorities and our economy, and the new restrictions will be introduced along with the resources, which means we are better equipped to control the virus and limit some of the damage on jobs and businesses
« Although infection rates vary across South Yorkshire, collective action was the only practical choice to keep everyone in our area safe. If the restrictions are effective, individual local authorities will be able to to move to lower alert levels as soon as it is safe to do so, in consultation with other local leaders, myself and the national government »
Pubs, casinos, betting shops and software gaming centers will close for at least four weeks in the Sheffield City area Gyms will remain open but gym classes will not be permitted Restrictions will come into effect at one minute after midnight Saturday
As Greater Manchester and its mayor, Andy Burnham, waged a public and increasingly fierce battle to accept the Level 3 restrictions, Jarvis and his South Yorkshire colleagues conducted their negotiations behind closed doors
The compromise reached is somewhat distant from the demands made by regional leaders when negotiations opened on October 9
They wrote Boris Johnson with a five-point plan, which included requests for ‘local leave’ for workers at companies who can’t work or have their hours cut due to restrictions
« Government should improve Employment Assistance Scheme (JSS) to fully fund costs of hours not worked up to £ 1,400 per month Self-employment income support scheme to be extended to the self-employed and self-employed for the duration of local restrictions, ”they said in the letter
But in the meantime, the Treasury has ruled out any changes to the national JSS – which offers to pay two-thirds of the wages of workers whose businesses close due to level 3 restrictions
Jarvis also called for a « targeted support program for businesses in the hospitality, leisure and recreation industries that are unable to operate at normal capacity levels or are facing complete shutdown. »
« This includes flexible subsidies administered by local authorities and other tariff concessions for businesses after April 2021, to target support for viable businesses that are likely to have higher fixed costs and whose failure risks a domino effect avoidable in local economies »
It is unclear how the Sheffield city region can spend its £ 30million in support of businesses and by what time frame
Following confusion over how the government decided how much each region receives, Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick suggested there was a transparent funding formula
He told ITV that areas entering level 3 would receive £ 8 per head for tracking and tracing and enforcement and £ 20 per leader for business support
Based on Jenrick’s formula, the Sheffield City region got a slightly more generous deal than the first two regions to enter Tier 3, Lancashire and Liverpool working at around £ 29 per capita for a population of 14 million people
South Yorkshire, what level 3 means
News from around the world – UK – South Yorkshire agrees to go under Covid level 3 restrictions
