Oldham announces new wave of lockdown restrictions after a sharp rise in coronavirus infections in ‘large family households’

“A significant proportion of recent cases involve multiple individuals testing positive within a household, showing that household spread is a real issue – especially in households with large families,” the council said.

Katrina Stephens, director of public health for Oldham, said: “We know that effective testing is at the heart of tackling the spread of the virus. We are therefore urging anyone who shows symptoms that may be coronavirus to book a test online.

“If we all do our bit and stick to the restrictions now, we can help stop the spread of

Coronavirus, and protect ourselves and our loved ones.”

Along with other towns with a large Asian population suffering elevated infection rates, public officials and local politicians say large families, often living in small terraced houses

and looking after elderly relatives at home, explain the ethnic population’s vulnerability to the disease.

Kate Hollern, MP for Blackburn which saw a recent spike and subsequent restrictions tightened told the Telegraph: “The infection rate is now declining because Blackburn with Darwen Council has done everything to halt the spread of the infection, including delaying the lifting measures.

“But Blackburn would have tackled the spread of the virus weeks ago if the Government had given the council the right data – far from the “world-beating” test and trace programme we were promised, this Government has been far too slow to share crucial information with local government.

Leicester became the first city in Britain to be placed in a local lockdown on June 29, after public health officials voiced concern at the city’s alarming rise in Covid-19 cases.

Shops that only reopened on June 15 were ordered to close while some pubs and restaurants have still not reopened.