Telford MP Lucy Allan and MP for the Wrekin, Mark Pritchard, are jointly lobbying the Government to argue that Telford & Wrekin should be treated as part of the County of Shropshire when the coronavirus tier system returns.
When the national lockdown expires on 2nd December, the UK will move back to the uniform three-tier system that had been adopted before lockdown.
The geographical scope of tiered areas remains under consideration. As a result Lucy Allan MP and Mark Pritchard MP will be lobbying the Government to consider Telford and Wrekin with the rest of Shropshire to have the best opportunity to leave lockdown at the lowest tier.
Telford has a distinct local economy with rural links and has proved itself to have managed the number of cases far more successfully than similar sized towns around the country.
If counties are instead to be combined into larger regions, the local MPs are lobbying to get Shropshire (with Telford and Wrekin) combined with Herefordshire - this would reflect the rural nature of both counties and their looser connections with major conurbations.
Given that the UK is likely to be in these new tiers until March, Lucy is determined to ensure we get into the tier that does least harm to the town whilst fairly reflecting residents' hard work in tackling the spread of the virus throughout the year.
Following a meeting today with the Chief Executive of Telford and Wrekin Council, Lucy believes Telford's steadily decreasing infection rates and direction of travel should justify the return to the lowest tier as soon as possible.
Picture above: Lucy Allan MP and the other Shropshire MPs (pre-COVID)
