How Preston and South Ribble’s coronavirus infection rate has changed in final week of January, new weekend Covid cases and lockdown will only be ‘eased slowly’

The boarded up Black Horse Pub in Preston city centre during a quiet day in lockdown Pic: Tony Worrall

Preston and South Ribble’s Covid-19 infecton rates have begun falling in the past week, but still remain above or where they were during the second lockdown in November.

New cases confirmed over the weekend include 73 recorded cases in Preston for Saturday (30 January).

In South Ribble there were 60 new Covid-19 cases for the same day.

Wyre recorded 46 new cases, Ribble Valley saw 42, Chorley with 51 and Fylde with 29.

See the latest coronavirus cases and information near you

Sunday (31 January) saw 88 new confirmed cases in Preston – the highest of anywhere in Lancashire.

In South Ribble there were 44 new cases on the same day.

Wyre recorded 31, Ribble Valley 26, Fylde 32 and Chorley recorded 52.

During the week beginning 18 January Preston and South Ribble had regularly featured in England’s fastest-rising infection rates.

But during the past week the rates have begun to decline of cases per 100,000 people, while Fylde has moved into England’s fastest-rising infection rates.

South Ribble is seeing a much faster reduction in its infection rate compared to Preston. See the chart below to see how the infection rates have changed, you can see the graph here if it doesn’t load.

Lockdown will be eased ‘very slowly’

Social distancing measured may be needed throughout the rest of 2021 to help contain coronavirus, ministers have warned.

And leading health experts say lockdown restrictions will be eased ‘very slowly’ so if there’s any rise in cases the lockdown can be restored quicky.

Public Health England’s coronavirus strategy chief Dr Susan Hopkins told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show: “We have learnt, as we did on the first occasion, we have to relax things really quite slowly, so that if cases start to increase we can clamp down quite fast.

“Any releases that we have will have to happen very slowly, very cautiously, watching and waiting as we go, with a two-week period to watch and see the impact of that relaxation because it takes that to see what’s happening in the population.”

Cabinet minister Liz Truss was asked if social distancing measures may need to last for the rest of the year in response to the research commissioned by Spi-M and worked on by four members of the advisory group.

“I don’t want to make predictions about the situation in the autumn, I think it’s far too far away,” Ms Truss told Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday.