Liverpool ‘set for lockdown’ & may see pubs and restaurants become takeaways

he said: "We know there will be government meetings to decide what happens next on Friday, but we fully expect to be affected by lockdown measures having gone over the 100 cases per 100,000 government threshold.

"We think this could well be part of a wider North West lockdown, because you can see cases are rising across the whole region.

"We may see pubs and restaurants reduced to takeaway services and restrictions on households mixing, we will have to wait and see exactly what measures are brought in and will keep people informed."

He also warned care homes and visitations may also be affected.

At the weekend Merseyside was put on the Government watch list of hotspots to keep an eye on.

And as demand for tests rise throughout the country it was not possible to book a slot in Liverpool, Wirral, Bury or Salford today, which are all areas within the top 20 highest infection rates in England.

Earlier this week ministers brought in new laws to help stop people gathering in groups of more than six - with £100 fines for people found to be disobeying.

CASE RISE

The number of new cases yesterday reached more than 3,000 as infections started to spike last week.

And testing is in chaos again as kits face being rationed and only given to priority groups after a backlog of cases.

Tests were also not available on the Government website in the remainder of 10 local authorities with surging cases, which are Blackburn with Darwen, Burnley, Tameside, Warrington and Knowsley.

Around 185,000 people are waiting for results as labs struggle to cope with the demand for extra tests.

Last night Matt Hancock revealed that tests would have to be prioritised again to make sure that people who needed them the most could get them.

NHS workers and social care staff will be the first to get access.

The Sun reported this week that curfews could be slapped on pubs and restaurants across the country as part of moves to curb the spread.

Bars in Bolton already have to close early in an attempt to curb the rise in cases in the city, and Rhondda Cynon will have to follow suit.

And today the director of Public Health England for London warned the capital could face further lockdown rules.