Could Lincolnshire be another track and trace app pilot?

City of Lincoln Council has approved a 1.9% tax hike despite a series of cuts for 2021-22 due to the financial uncertainty around the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 1.9% rise will take city council’s share of council tax for a Band D property in Lincoln to £285.39 – an increase of £5.31.

The executive committee agreed on increasing allotment charges, council house and garage rents.

Council bosses predict a budget gap of £1.75 million and said it must close the hole for financial stability.

Allotment charges will also see most tenants pay between £58.70-£78.30 per year from 2022, an increase of between 38p and 51 pence per week.

Council housing rent will increase by an average of 1.5%, while council garage rents will increase by 3%.

Attendees at City of Lincoln Council’s executive on Monday.

The authority said it faces a number of ongoing challenges caused by the coronavirus pandemic and requires a substantial reduction in all of its budgets.

Cllr Ric Metcalfe, Leader of City of Lincoln Council said: “It’s a reasonably modest increase for most people, and we will support low income groups still with the concessions.”

The council has saved more than £9 million annually over the past decade, however will have to increase savings by £850,000 next year, rising to £1.75 million by 2023/24.

Due to the pandemic’s impact on government funded reliefs, empty properties and business closures, the authority estimates it will only retain £5.1 million of the £42 million of business rates generated in the city.

The draft budget will go to consultation and return before the council later this year for a final decision.

There have been 372 new coronavirus cases and nine COVID-related deaths in Greater Lincolnshire on Monday.

The government’s COVID-19 dashboard recorded 325 new cases in Lincolnshire, 30 in North Lincolnshire and 17 in North East Lincolnshire.

Some nine deaths were registered in Lincolnshire and none in North and North East Lincolnshire. These figures include deaths both in and out of hospitals, as well as residents in hospitals outside the county.

NHS England reported nine new local hospital deaths at United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust and one at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust on Monday. Hospital deaths have now surpassed 1,000 since the pandemic started in Greater Lincolnshire.

National cases increased by 37,535 to 3,433,494, while deaths rose by 599 to 89,860.

Here’s Greater Lincolnshire’s infection rate up to January 17 according to the government dashboard:

Greater Lincolnshire’s infection rates from Jan 11 to Jan 17. | Data: Gov UK / Table: James Mayer for The Lincolnite

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Coronavirus data for Greater Lincolnshire on Monday, January 18

Greater Lincolnshire includes Lincolnshire and the unitary authorities of North and North East (Northern) Lincolnshire.

44,374 cases (up 372)

• 30,784 in Lincolnshire (up 325)
• 6,927 in North Lincolnshire (up 30)
• 6,663 in North East Lincolnshire (up 17)

1,686 deaths (up nine)

• 1,196 from Lincolnshire (up nine)
• 268 from North Lincolnshire (no change)
• 222 from North East Lincolnshire (no change)

of which 1,006 hospital deaths (up 10)

• 612 at United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust (up nine)
• 30 at Lincolnshire Community Health Service hospitals (no change)
• 1 at Lincolnshire Partnership Foundation Trust (no change)
• 363 in Northern Lincolnshire (NLAG) (up one)

3,433,494 UK cases, 89,860 deaths

DATA SOURCE — FIGURES CORRECT AT THE TIME OF the latest update. postcode data includes deaths not in healthcare facilities or in hospitals outside authority boundaries.

Eight people were fined for two separate COVID-19 rule breaches over the weekend, after being found partying and camping near Woodhall Spa.

Officers were called to two different incidents at Ostler’s Plantation, a woodland area near Woodhall Spa on Saturday, January 16 and on Sunday, January 17.

Five people were issued with £200 fines after a report of partying at around 11.08pm on Saturday.

The next morning, police were again called to the area at 8.21am after people were seen camping at the location.

Three people were fined as a result of this, again valued at £200 due to being first time offenders.

If these fines are paid within 14 days of the offence, the cost will be cut in half to £100.

On the same weekend, but this time in a different location, six urban explorers were fined after travelling from three different counties to try and gain access to an abandoned hospital in Grantham.

The behaviour of COVID-19 rule breakers has been described as “dangerous” by Lincolnshire Police’s assistant chief constable Kerrin Wilson, who referred to them as “Covidiots”.