Rishi Sunak will announce a local furlough scheme today in which the government will subsidise two thirds of the wages of workers in pubs, restaurants and other businesses that are forced to close to stop the spread of coronavirus.
Pubs and restaurants in northern England will be shut next week in an effort to stop hospitals being overwhelmed by the rising number of Covid-19 cases.
A new system of restrictions divides England into three tiers of escalating severity. Merseyside and other parts of northern England will be placed in the highest tier as some hospitals start to run out of dedicated coronavirus beds. Businesses such as pubs, restaurants and cafés will be forced to close.
Steve Rotheram called for support on a similar scale to the original scheme
BRADLEY ORMESHER/THE TIMES
The local furlough scheme will remain in place for as
