Councils will get an extra £1.6billion in funding amid coronavirus pandemic

Councils were today ordered by the Government to keep parks open after some closed their gates in recent weeks due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick told the Downing Street daily press conference how he had ‘made it clear’ that green spaces should not be shut. He also confirmed this afternoon that funerals can still go ahead – and asked councils to keep cemeteries open to allow families to grieve for their loved ones.

However he warned that people must abide by social distancing rules, and not congregate in parks – but they must be accessible for ‘the health of the nation’. Mr Jenrick said the lockdown measures in place since March 23 were harder for those without gardens or open spaces and that ‘people need parks’. It came as he said councils across England will be given an extra £1.6billion in funding after complaints from local authorities that services could suffer. Mr Jenrick has asked councils to keep cemeteries open to allow families to grieve for their loved ones. He pointed to the death of 13-year-old Ismail Mohamed Abdulwahab, from Brixton, who died after contracting Covid-19.

Robert Jenrick says Captain Tom Moore will be guest of honour at Nightingale opening

Second World War hero Captain Tom Moore will be the guest of honour when the new NHS Nightingale Hospital for the Yorkshire region is opened in Harrogate next week.

The 99-year-old’s bid to raise money for the NHS by walking laps of his garden hit £23 million this afternoon – less than two weeks after he started the challenge.

On April 6 he set out to walk 100 laps of his garden in Bedfordshire before his 100th birthday on April 30, but he completed the challenge on Thursday.

Mr Jenrick thanked Captain Moore for his fundraising efforts for the NHS, stating: ‘We have all been humbled by the gestures, large and small, by people across the country to show support for those working so hard to protect the NHS and save lives.

‘None more so than Captain Tom Moore, who has raised an astonishing £23 million this week for NHS charities.

‘I can’t think of a more worthy person to be the guest of honour at the opening of the new Nightingale Hospital in Harrogate next week.’

He said the tragedy was compounded after the family could not attend his funeral.

‘That is not right and it shouldn’t have happened,’ he added. ‘For clarity, funerals can go ahead with close family present.

‘Social distancing measures must be respected, but families must have the opportunity to say a respectful goodbye to those that they love.’

The Government will publish further guidance on funerals, Mr Jenrick said, adding: ‘I’m also asking councils to keep open or indeed to reopen cemeteries and graveyards… for people to make that private visit and seek solace at the grave of someone you’ve loved or to privately lay flowers.

‘There have been times in my life when I have needed to do that. These are small steps, but small mercies can make a difference.’

The Local Government Association has said the situation during the pandemic could cause some councils to ‘take extreme cost-cutting and rationing measures soon’.

The crisis has raised pressure on council services like support for those living with disabilities and social care, while income from areas like parking fees has dropped.

Mr Jenrick said the extra money will boost the backing councils have received to cope with the pandemic to £3.2billion.

An extra £300million will go to devolved administrations, with Scotland getting £155million, Wales £95million, and Northern Ireland £50million.

Mr Jenrick said: ‘I promised local government would have the resources they need to meet this challenge.

‘We stand shoulder to shoulder with local government and my priority is to make sure they are supported so they can continue to support their communities through this challenging time.

Local Government Secretary Robert Jenrick speaks at 10 Downing Street this afternoon

‘Up and down the country council workers are the unsung heroes as we tackle this virus. They are in the front line of the national effort to keep the public safe and deliver the services people need.’

Ministers will ‘swiftly’ review why BAME people are being  disproportionately affected by coronavirus

The Government will ‘swiftly’ carry out research into why a disproportionate number of people from black, Asian and minority ethnic are suffering from coronavirus.

Asked about the effect of the virus on those from BAME)communities, Mr Jenrick said: ‘There does appear to be a disproportionate impact of the virus on those from BAME communities.

‘For that reason, the chief medical officer commissioned work from Public Health England to better understand this issue.’

He said it was ‘right that we do thorough research swiftly’ in order to ‘better understand it’.

Last week, data on patients with confirmed coronavirus from the Intensive Care National Audit and Research Centre suggested ethnic minorities are over-represented compared with the general population.

Of 1,966 patients with Covid-19, the centre said 64.8 per cent were white, 13.6 per cent black, 13.8per cent Asian, and 6.6 per cent were described as other.

Around 7.5 per cent of the population were Asian and 3.3 per cent black in the 2011 UK census.

The first ten doctors named as having died from coronavirus in the UK were from BAME communities.

Mr Jenrick also said the Government will pay out £850million to councils this month to help the most vulnerable.

He added: ‘We are also helping councils with inevitable cash flow challenges by deferring £2.6billion in business rate payments to central government, and paying them £850million in social care grants upfront this month.

‘Working with councils and charities, we have made huge progress in protecting the most vulnerable during this national emergency.’

Mr Jenrick also said has is ‘very proud’ of the effort of councils to help vulnerable people in their own areas, including securing safe accommodation for rough sleepers.

‘And our plan to protect rough sleepers has resulted in over 90 per cent being offered safe accommodation,’ he said.

Mr Jenrick added: ‘Of course, this is not the end of rough sleeping. There is still a great deal of work to be done. And my department and I will be at the heart of that.’

On the subject of high streets and local businesses, he said: ‘I’m delighted that so many cafes and restaurants and other businesses have taken up the opportunity to switch to offering delivery, take away, and click-and-collect services.

‘This expands the supply of food available to people, alongside the supermarkets, as well as allowing businesses that would otherwise have closed to remain open and to keep paying their staff.’

Richard Watts, the leader of Islington Council in North London, told BBC News today: ‘We are faced with this double whammy of spending money that we in normal circumstances wouldn’t have to spend on things like adult social care, as in the homeless, providing food and support for residents who are personally in financial crisis, at the same time as losing money hand over fist because of a loss of income from parking charges, of rents where we rent out our own buildings, people aren’t using leisure centres for obvious reasons.

‘So councils who are already struggling financially given ten years of pretty hard spending cuts imposed on us over the last decade are really teetering on the edge without further backing.’

He added: ‘We’re going to have to start taking some pretty quick decisions if we don’t get the support we think we need. We need to hear that the Government is going to carry on standing by local government.

‘At the rate we’re going we are probably going to need a similar size further tranche of money at some point down the line because it’s a really challenging situation for us.’

In a letter to Mr Jenrick before the extra funding was announced, the LGA said ‘radical action’ to prevent councils ‘rationing spending’ was needed

The letter also stressed the loss of income being generated by councils.

It said: ‘Local authorities are suffering severe income loss from a range of services from leisure, parking, bus operations, planning and commercial waste.

‘Many councils rely heavily on this income to fund their annual expenditure – on average, 10 per cent of total gross service costs are funded through fees and charges, going up to 25 per cent on average for shire districts in particular.’

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