days in the north west, 13 days in yorkshire and the humber, as opposed to 29 days in england more generally. scientists present findings that nearly 25% of nhs trust inpatients with covid-19 acquired the infection after admission to hospital. 10 october – as the government prepares to introduce new measures to fight covid-19, leaders in the north of england criticise the level of financial support offered by the chancellor. mayor of greater manchester andy burnham says that people will not be surrendered to hardship. five people are arrested and a police officer is injured at an anti-lockdown protest in london. 11 october – following a decline in the number of people being contacted by nhs test and trace, communities secretary robert jenrick says the government will "fully embrace" local test and trace systems. five manchester mps write a letter to the prime minister arguing against plans to introduce a three-tier system for covid-19 restrictions, and saying that pub closures will not stop infection rates rising. 12 october – nhs nightingale hospitals in manchester, sunderland and harrogate are told to prepare to take patients. it is confirmed that gcse and a level exams will go ahead in 2021, but with reduced content on some papers, and with a start date pushed back by three weeks. 13 october - figures reveal that the number of secondary schools disrupted by covid-19 is increasing, with 21% sending pupils home because of the virus. this figure is an increase from 18% in the previous week, and 8% in mid-september. 14 october - the covid-19 tier regulations come into force, defining three levels of restrictions to be applied as necessary in geographic areas. these replace and revoke the existing local lockdown regulations. the liverpool city region is the first to be assigned to the strictest tier. footage of people gathering in liverpool two hours before the new regulations are introduced emerges on social media; joe anderson, the mayor of liverpool, criticises those involved in the gathering, saying they "shame our city". nhs hospital trusts in plymouth, liverpool and belfast are cancelling planned elective procedures outright or scaling-back surgery due to an upsurge in covid-19 patients requiring intensive care. the joint biosecurity centre's gold command recommends greater manchester and lancashire be placed under tier 3 measures, subject to being signed off by number 10. 15 october - health secretary matt hancock announces in the house of commons that london, essex (except thurrock and southend), york, north east derbyshire, chesterfield, erewash, elmbridge, and barrow in furness will be moved to tier 2 "high" alert level, restricting different households mixing indoors from midnight on 16 october. mayor of greater manchester andy burnham and local politicians resist plans to put the area into the highest level 3 tier, citing the impact the move would have on the local economy. 16 october – council leaders in lancashire agree to move the county into tier 3 restrictions from midnight, but unlike the liverpool city region gyms will be allowed to remain open. in a press conference at 10 downing street, prime minister boris johnson says the spread of covid-19 in manchester is "grave" and he may "need to intervene" if new measures are not agreed. 17 october – protesters march through london to demonstrate against the city's inclusion in tier 2 restrictions. manchester's restrictions status continues to be unclear as mayor andy burnham rejects a statement from downing street that it has arranged talks for the following day. the dhsc reveals that police forces across england are to be given access to test and trace data in circumstances where an individual with a positive result has been told to self-isolate and there is evidence of non-compliance "without reasonable justification". 18 october – mayor of greater manchester andy burnham accuses boris johnson of exaggerating the risk of covid-19 in the area in order to persuade local politicians to agree to go into tier 3 restrictions, and writes a letter to the leaders of the uk's major political parties calling for a parliamentary debate on the proposals. cabinet office minister michael gove warns that restrictions may be imposed if an agreement cannot be reached. volunteer co-ordinator and trustee, mezmin malida, is featured in a guardian article on how "locked-down leicester" feels forgotten. 19 october – communities secretary robert jenrick confirms that political leaders in manchester have until midday the following day to reach a decision with the government on enter into tier 3 restrictions. 20 october – prime minister boris johnson confirms that greater manchester will move to level 3 covid restrictions from friday 23 october after failure to reach a deal with local leaders. in response, andy burnham says greater manchester will face a "punishing" winter. school attendance figures show that at least half of secondary schools in england sent one or more pupils home because of covid-19 during the previous week. sadiq kahn, the mayor of london, calls for the 10pm curfew to be scrapped in london to allow bars and restaurants to deal with the tier 2 restrictions. 21 october – dan jarvis the mayor of the sheffield city region, announces that south yorkshire will go into tier 3 restrictions from saturday 24 october. prime minister boris johnson announces £60m of funding for greater manchester to help it deal with tier 3 restrictions. mps vote 322–261 to reject a parliamentary motion to provide free school meals to children during holidays until easter 2021. 22 october - coventry, stoke-on-trent and slough are to move to tier 2 restrictions from saturday, 24 october 2020, due to surging infection rates with people over the age of 60, in particular, being among the cases. manchester's nightingale hospital will reopen from the week commencing 26 october in readiness of the area moving into tier 3 restrictions. ministers are accused of making decisions favouring london with covid-19 support, as rishi sunak announces a financial package worth billions. mayor of greater manchester, andy burnham, points out that the new support is largely similar to what he requested prior to talks breaking down. at a downing street press conference, prime minister boris johnson says he shares "people's frustration" with the turnaround times for the track and trace service, and that the system must improve. 23 october – the coronavirus fatality rate in england increases for the first time since the apex of april 2020. a spokesman for boris johnson says the prime minister is "hopeful" that "some aspects of our lives" could be "back to normal" by christmas. as the half-term break begins, a number of councils and local businesses around england are offering to provide free meals for schoolchildren during the holiday. a forthcoming rugby union match between england and the barbarians at twickenham, scheduled for 25 october, is called off after 12 barbarians players are stood down for breaking covid rules. warrington borough council announces that warrington in cheshire will go into tier 3 restrictions, with tighter measures scheduled to begin on thursday 29 october. 24 october – as south yorkshire enters tier 3 restrictions, sheffield city region mayor dan jarvis urges the uk government to "define precisely what the exit criteria is" from tier 3. professor neil ferguson, a former member of the government's scientific advisory group for emergencies, says that some school years may need to close in order to control the virus. eighteen people are arrested at an anti-lockdown protest in central london. headteachers at some schools in england report that access to free government provided laptops for pupils has been cut. gloucestershire police say that during wales's 17-day lockdown, they will stop people crossing the border from wales who they suspect are not making an essential journey and advise them to turn back. those who refuse will have their details passed to police in wales who can then issue fines. 25 october – following criticism of test and trace, the mandatory 14-day quarantine for contacts of people who receive a positive test for covid-19 may be reduced to 10 days, or even 1 week. a bma survey of 6,610 physicians reveals that 37% hold the view that the recently implemented tier system in england will be an ineffectual measure. 26 october – prime minister boris johnson rejects mounting calls to reverse the government's decision not to fund free school meals over the half-term holidays. nottingham is to move into tier 3 restrictions on thursday, 29 october. with eight million people in england set to be living under tier 3 restrictions by the end of the week, a group of conservative mps representing constituencies in the north of england write to the prime minister demanding a "clear road-map" out of lockdown. 27 october – warrington enters tier 3 restrictions, the alert level described as "very high", due to rising covid-19 infection rates. covid-19 tests that provide a result within an hour are being piloted at universities in england in order to allow students to return home for christmas. hospitals in leeds cancel non-essential operations as the number of covid-19 patients in the city rises above levels seen earlier in the year. dudley and staffordshire are announced as the latest areas to enter tier 2 regulations, though a date for them to do so is not confirmed. 28 october – it is confirmed that nottinghamshire will enter tier 3 restrictions from friday 30 october, with auction houses, car boot sales, betting shops, saunas and tattoo parlours required to close. alcohol cannot be served in shops after 9pm, but can be sold "in hospitality venues where accompanying a substantial meal" until 10pm. a loophole in the law causes confusion as to whether alcohol can be served in social clubs in areas under tier 3 restrictions. opposition parties call for covid rules to be the same across all four nations for the christmas period, in response to which environment secretary george eustice says "it's too early to say" what rules will be in place then. 29 october – it is confirmed that oxford is to be placed into tier 2 restrictions from saturday 31 october after cases there rose to 134.5 in every 100,000 for the week ending 23 october, and that west yorkshire will be placed into tier 3 restrictions from monday 2 november. more than 10% of london hospital beds are in use with covid-19 patients as the nhs comes under pressure due to a second wave. delia smith, a celebrity chef and director of norwich city, writes to prime minister boris johnson urging him to allow fans to return to football stadiums, citing concern that smaller clubs could be at risk of closure without the return of supporters. 30 october – nottinghamshire moves into tier 3 restrictions. the move is distinctive from most other areas subject to tier 3 restrictions since betting shops, nail salons, tattoo parlour and saunas are required to close. foreign secretary dominic raab tells the bbc radio 4 today programme the uk government is "striving" to avoid "blanket" covid measures, which he says would not be in the best interests of the country. the times reports that prime minister boris johnson will announce a nationwide lockdown for england on monday 2 november, with the restrictions coming into force as early as wednesday 4 november and lasting until december. 31 october – business leaders criticise plans for a second lockdown in england, citing the "immense" damage it will do to businesses. after scientists project that there could be several thousand covid deaths a day, prime minister boris johnson announces a second month-long lockdown for england, from thursday 5 november to wednesday 2 december, in order to prevent what he describes as a "medical and moral disaster" for the nhs. england will then revert to the tier system. the announcement was brought forward by two days (from monday to saturday) after leaks to media the previous day; a sky news report later found a noticeable increase in people making journeys in the five days between the announcement and the start of the new restrictions. unlike the first lockdown, schools, universities, manufacturing businesses and construction sites will remain open. the english premier league and other elite sports can also continue behind closed doors during the four week lockdown, it is confirmed. november 2020 1 november – cabinet office minister michael gove confirms the four-week england lockdown could be extended beyond