Police advice ahead of last weekend before Christmas

As Christmas fast approaches, we are again urging our communities to celebrate sensibly this year, to help prevent the spread of Coronavirus and to stay safe while out and about.

The coming Friday is normally one of the busiest days of the year for our towns and cities, and while we are all celebrating differently this year, we continue to urge people who may be visiting the shops, bars, pubs and restaurants across our region, to do so safely.

Chief Superintendent Ngaire Waine said: "We know Christmas is normally a time to celebrate with family, friends and colleagues, but this year we are all making sacrifices and are required to celebrate Christmas differently. We don’t want to undo the hard work that has been done so far in preventing the spread of Coronavirus.

“We are urging people to know what the regulations are, the Liverpool city region is currently under Tier two restrictions which means although many shops, restaurants and licensed premises serving substantial meals are now open, people are not permitted to gather indoors with people who are not in their household or support bubble.

“If you are planning on visiting one of our towns or the city centre, make sure you plan your visit ahead - lots of restaurants and bars serving substantial meals are busy, we’d urge you to book ahead or face disappointment.

“The threat of Coronavirus has not gone away and we cannot let our guard down. This means social meals with colleagues are unfortunately off the table this year – know the rules and only visit establishments or mix indoors with people in your household or support bubble and remember last orders are at 10pm.

She added: "For those who do visit the shops, bars and restaurants, we want them to do so safely and get home safely.

"We will have an increased police presence this weekend, targeting the minority of people, intent on causing misery over the festive period, whether that’s by stealing people’s belongings or committing violent offences, but we also want people to take responsibility for themselves. Our message to people is simple – know the rules, only visit pubs, bars and restaurants if you are eating a substantial meal, plan ahead and as always, drink sensibly.”