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08
Oct 2020
Harrogate Borough Council gets £58,000 for covid enforcement
Harrogate Borough Council has been allocated £57,951 today as part of government attempts to enforce coronavirus restrictions.
The government has awarded £60 million to councils and police forces across the country.
North Yorkshire’s Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner has been allocated £291,987 as part of the deal.
Councils are expected to use the money for compliance and enforcement, such as recruiting covid marshals, carrying out inspections, issuing fines and closing premises in the case of non-compliance.
Although covid marshals will not have any enforcement powers, government guidance says they should "engage, explain and encourage best practice and national covid secure guidance".
Read more:
- Harrogate to get permanent Covid testing site
- Use Harrogate’s Nightingale for other services, says councillor
Last month, the borough council said it had received no detail on covid marshals so could not plan for how they could be used in the district.
A council spokesman said: “In partnership with the North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum, the development of any scheme is still under review.”
The government also said the funding would allow police to increase patrols in town centres and ensure that people are complying with the new restrictions, particularly in high-risk areas.
Julia Mulligan, North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, said more clarity was needed on the guidance before plans could be put in place.
She said:
Robert Jenrick, local government secretary, said:
Officials at North Yorkshire’s Local Resilience Forum, which is a partnership of public agencies that responds to emergencies, has warned that the county faced a “tipping point” amid increased infections.
In Harrogate, the weekly case rate stands at 97.6 per 100,000 people and the district saw a further 24 coronavirus cases confirmed yesterday.
The highest rate in the county is in Craven at 136.5. Local resilience forum officials expect the district to be added to the government's coronavirus watchlist this week.
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