Andy Burnham encourages Wiganers to watch England's first Euro 2020 match outside

He told BBC Breakfast: “If you look to this weekend with the weather looking good in Greater Manchester which is great for everybody with the football coming, we would say minimise the number of people you watch the match with. Watch it outside if you can.”

He also praised the Government for “surging support” into areas where there are high case numbers after Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced that a “strengthened package of support” will be provided for Greater Manchester and Lancashire.

“We very much appreciate the help of the Government. It’s a reversal of where we were last year,” he said.

“Then we were getting restrictions put on us without support. This is an approach where the restrictions are being managed nationally through the road map. We’ve been working closely with the Government on this. It’s a sensible approach and we support it.”

Thanks for reading. If you value what we do and are able to support us, a digital subscription is just £1 for your first month. Try us today by clicking here and viewing our offers.