Council reassures Northumberland residents

13 Mar 2020 ARCHIVED (over 3 months old) - view latest news

Northumberland County Council is reassuring residents and businesses they will be fully supported during the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.

Regular meetings are being held to keep abreast of the rapidly evolving situation, and the council has put in place detailed plans to ensure business continuity - with key services prioritised and running as usual wherever possible.

Council Leader Peter Jackson said: “We understand people may feel worried about coronavirus, and I want to reassure communities we have well rehearsed plans in place to ensure, wherever possible, it is business as usual in the county.

“We may well need to change the way we do things to minimise the risk of spreading the virus but this isn’t unique to our council - from sporting events to travel, and day-to-day activities - everyone across the country is having to change the way they do things.

“As an example of this and as a sensible precaution, we have decided to cancel all non-essential public meetings for the time being.

“We know the current situation is also of concern to the many businesses in our county and we’ll be doing everything we can to support them.”

In his budget this week, the Chancellor set out a package of temporary and targeted measures to support public services, people and businesses through this period of disruption.

A range of advice and information for businesses and employers has now been published HERE. It details the type and scale of help available on a number of schemes.

This includes support and information on business rates, tax and sick pay, and the council will be working businesses across the county when further guidance is availlable.

Key advice for all residents remains the same. The recommended steps everyone should take to protect themselves are maintaining good hand, respiratory and personal hygiene:

• wash your hands often with warm water and soap

• use tissues to trap germs when you cough or sneeze

• bin used tissues as quickly as possible.

Liz Morgan, the Council’s Director of Public Health, said: “Maintaining the safety of all our residents remains our top priority, and we continue to work with our partners to closely monitor developments nationally and internationally.

“All the information available continues to suggest that in the vast majority of cases, this is a mild illness."