Pubs and restaurants in Leicester could face a fresh setback after a local spike in cases of Covid-19.
Hundreds of venues across the East Midlands cit y have been preparing to open on July 4 as part of the next stage of easing of the lockdown.
Official figures suggest some 30 per cent of the almost 3,000 people tested positive for Covid-19 in the city came in the most recent two weeks.
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Leicester Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby said he received an email at 1am this morning with recommendations that the city should stay “under current lockdown restrictions” for another two weeks after July 4.
Asked what the Government report said, he said: “Not very much, all of the dramatic stuff about local lockdown has diminished to two more weeks of present restrictions, perhaps.
“The report itself doesn’t give any good reason why we should do that and is obviously written by someone who doesn’t know the city.”
He told LeicestershireLive the report, which he received by email at 1.04am today, was “inaccurate, put together in a rush and failing to make the case for the action it proposes”.
Sir Peter told BBC Radio Leicester that the Government report reads as though it has “hastily been cobbled together in an attempt to do something”.
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Over the weekend, Home Secretary Priti Patel said the Government was looking at returning Leicester to lockdown – but it was still unclear what that would mean and how it might be implemented.
Leicester City Council has said it is premature to talk about drastic interventions in response to virus cases locally, but ministers appeared to be briefing some national journalists on stepping up measures to reduce infections.
Despite the email, Sir Peter said he was not convinced that Leicester should be treated any differently to anywhere else.
He admitted that at this stage he does not know who would make such a decision or how it would be enforced.
He described the whole situation as “intensely frustrating” and said that the Government had been “very, very difficult” to communicate with.
A meeting that was scheduled for 9am today, between Government officials, Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) and Public Health England has now been postponed.
The city council have been asking Public Health and DHSC for up to date and detailed data about where cases are.
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The Government has not answered key questions about the issue that were submitted to it yesterday by LeicestershireLive.
Scott Knowles chief executive of East Midlands Chamber, said protecting public health remained an over-riding factor in determining what can re-open and when.
He said: “Although localised lockdowns may be necessary as things progress, it’s important that any such decisions are evidence-based and driven by the most accurate data possible to make sure they can be appropriately targeted, with the right level of focused support in place to mitigate any potential impacts.
“From a business perspective, firms will also want to know what that means for them as early as possible so they can plan accordingly.
“Although the whole economy has been affected by the pandemic, some sectors and areas have been hit harder than others, hospitality and the visitor economy in particular, meaning the 海角视频’s recovery will be sectoral and localised.
“Ongoing, flexible and targeted support from Government must be provided to the worst-affected sectors and local areas to avoid creating a two-tier recovery which could leave certain sectors and areas lagging behind.”