THE SECRETARY of State for Health, Matt Hancock has urged York residents to "stick at it" - as the city's case rate is close to being suitable for Tier 1 restrictions. 

Responding to York Outer MP, Julian Sturdy's question about what else York needed to do to move to Tier 1 in the next review, Mr Hancock said: “We do look at those human geographies because many people commute from North Yorkshire into York, but York and in fact many of the local authorities around it have done an absolutely fantastic job of bringing the virus under control.

"In York the case rate is 65 per 100,000, a little bit higher than we typically take places into tier 1. For instance, Herefordshire is 45, which is the same level Cornwall was when it was put into tier 1, but it’s [York] moving in the right direction.

"The over-60s case rate is also low, there has been some pressure as he knows on the hospital, but that is abating, so York and large swathes of North Yorkshire are moving in the right direction, and I would urge everybody right across North Yorkshire to stick at it.”

After hearing the Health Secretary’s response, Julian Sturdy said: “I am quite reassured by this clarity from Matt Hancock on which indicators York needs to hit to move down a tier, which sadly but understandably will not be possible before Christmas due to rising rates nationwide. Knowing we need to get our case rates down from the mid-sixties to the mid-forties per 100,000, and see reduced pressure on hospital places provides a clear target to aim for.

"I do fear the social and economic impact of prolonged tier 2 restrictions, and have pushed for us to go down a tier in recognition of our lower rate, but respect that the national picture makes it difficult to do this immediately, and the imperative to protect local NHS capacity so residents can get covid care when necessary.

"After this answer, I am more hopeful about the outcome of future fortnightly reviews of our city’s tier position, and at least feel more confident that in future our local efforts against the virus will be fairly considered when deciding the restrictions that apply.”

The Tier system each city is placed in is based on five criteria: case detection rates in all age groups, case detection rates in the over 60s, the rate at which cases are rising or falling, positivity rate (the number of positive cases detected as a percentage of tests taken), and pressure on the NHS.