Mayor of the West Midlands

If parts of the West Midlands go into the highest level of coronavirus restrictions, then the Metro mayor is confident a funding agreement can be reached.

Leaders of West Midlands local authorities met this morning to discuss what they would do if tier three restrictions were imposed.

The main subject of the discussions was the need for a funding package to support local businesses and Andy Street said: "Do I think we will reach an agreement with government – yes I do."

But he also said the process of applying for that money hadn't started yet.

Stoke's decision to ask for tier two restrictions was not a "unilateral decision" by the city council, the West Midlands Mayor has said.

Andy Street said it was "much more complicated than that" and added "I am absolutely certain there was a dialogue on this" in the week leading up to the announcement.

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Stoke-on-Trent City Council announced yesterday that it had gone to the government and asked to be upgraded to a "high" risk area, to slow the accelerating rate of infection.

But Department of Health regional convenor Clive Wright said: "We had been working with that local authority for about a week before."

He said the council had "expressed an interest" in the status change and the Department of Health was "able to help them accelerate that process".

Mr Wright said also said: "Some councils may want to go early as a preventative measure. Others have very good reasons to protect their local economies."

The West Midlands Mayor said he believes the 22:00 curfew for the hospitality industry is a regrettable, but necessary move.

It's after his Labour counterpart in Greater Manchester - Andy Burnham - said there should be an urgent review of the curfew.

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"We all wish there were no restrictions at all, but we have got to take appropriate action," West Midlands Mayor Andy Street said.

"The last thing I want to see is a complete close down of the hospitality sector, so I think this is a sensible judgement."

Additional coronavirus restrictions in Birmingham are now "looking likely", the West Midlands Mayor has said.

Andy Street said there has been a "very notable increase in Birmingham and Solihull" infection rates in the last few days, but said no decision has yet been made.

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The infection rate in Birmingham last week was 62.4 cases per 100,000 while in neighbouring Solihull it was 46.1, according to to NHS Digital.

Mr Street also said it appears to be "very much concentrated in the younger age groups" and is likely to be "as a result of socialising and household contact."

There have been no discussions about the possibility of a West Midlands-wide lockdown akin to the situation in Leicester, the region's mayor, Andy Street, has said.

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"The idea is to act as local as you can to prevent the situation going to a whole city of region," Mr Street said, adding every local authority within the West Midlands Combined Authority has a local outbreak plan.

"The [infection] trend is down and the data is encouraging," the Conservative mayor said, "but there is no room for complacency."

"If we were in a position where the virus was re-established across the conurbation, we would have to do that [lockdown] but I see no likelihood of that from our current position."

West Midlands mayor Andy Street has said there is still time for prime minister Boris Johnson to reflect on the actions of his aide Dominic Cummings.

Mr Cummings said he did not regret driving 260 miles from his London home to his parents' estate at the height of the coronavirus lockdown.

Speaking on BBC CWR this morning, Mr Street said his own view was that Mr Cummings' actions did not "satisfy the spirit" of the rules imposed by government, though admitted that "there was a part of the rules that allowed him to do this".

The West Midlands mayor has said headteachers will ultimately be responsible for the safety of staff and pupils when schools re-open.

And Andy Street said in that regard they were no different from "an office, a factory, a bus station, whatever".

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Mr Street said that governors could help, but if any head had concerns about safety, they should raise them with the government.

And he added: "And then we’ve got to see what central guidance can be given to try to get people comfortable with that."

The West Midlands mayor has said he's pleased to see industry start up again, but warned that it has to be done safely.

In a series of tweets, Andy Street said: "While it’s important to start trying to reboot our economy, we must keep workers safe and adhere to guidelines."

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Mr Street also said it is was "vital for thousands of jobs that we get the housing market going again", and that it was a "critical part of our economic growth in recent years".

The mayor of the West Midlands, Andy Street, says it's appropriate to start easing some of the lockdown restrictions.

Boris Johnson will make a statement to MPs this afternoon sharing more of his plans to ease some restrictions that were announced last night.

Mr Street, Conservative, told BBC WM: "My own reaction is that it is appropriate now just to begin to say 'let's take [what some people have described as] the baby steps that we can', subject to them proving to be safe."

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There has been criticism that the prime minister's message on Sunday evening lacked clarity.

Mr Street conceded Boris Johnson's broadcast had been light on clarity, but said that was inevitable during a 12-minute speech when "so many individual situations" still needed "to be answered". He added he expected detail to emerge in the Commons later.

Mr Street also restated what he thought was the emphasis of the prime minister's speech - caution, with health uppermost in mind:

Quote Message: The emphasis of the announcement is that the health issues [are] absolute paramount. [The prime minister] stressed time and time again that the steps are conditional - he did say we're just beginning to ease the lockdown in very cautious ways."

The emphasis of the announcement is that the health issues [are] absolute paramount. [The prime minister] stressed time and time again that the steps are conditional - he did say we're just beginning to ease the lockdown in very cautious ways."

The election to choose the next West Midlands Mayor will cost £3.6m, but the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) is still looking for money to pay for it.

It's due to take place on 7 May and the authority said it was hoping to get funding from the government, but won't find out if it's been successful until next month.

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If funding can't be found, the WMCA might have to pay for the polling stations, staff and other expenses itself.

Labour's candidate for the West Midlands mayoral contest has been announced as Liam Byrne, the MP for Birmingham Hodge Hill.

With just three months to go until the mayoral election, this is a late announcement by anyone’s standards.

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Originally Labour had planned to have its West Midlands candidate sorted by the end of last November – but a general election got in the way.

There have also been rumours of more than the usual in-fighting within the region about possible candidates.

Pete Lowe received the backing of union Unison and Salma Yaqoob hoped for a political comeback with endorsement from internal group Momentum.

It’s possible that this split the left-leaning vote amongst the membership.

But there was also early support for Liam Byrne from different Labour factions – including Labour’s now outgoing shadow chancellor John McDonnell and former Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

Liam Byrne has been announced as Labour's candidate to take on Conservative Andy Street for the position of Mayor of the West Midlands.

Elections will take place on 7 May.

People living and working in the West Midlands are to be asked how they would tackle climate change.

The West Midlands Combined Authority published its own strategy earlier this month, suggesting a range of measures, including banning every petrol and diesel car from the region's roads by 2041.

It also suggested more electric car charging points, more eco-friendly homes, a tree-planting programme and more LED street lights.

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Andy Street, the Mayor of the West Midlands, said the needs of business wouldn't be neglected and it was important to "balance our commitments to climate change with our commitments to developing a strong economy”.

The consultation will last for seven weeks.