The leader of Bolton council has called on the government not to push back plans to ease lockdown restrictions despite a rapid increase in Covid-19 cases.
The borough now has the highest infection rates in the country and figures have more than doubled over the last seven days.
Public health bosses believe this sudden spike in cases is being caused by the B.1.617.2 strain of the virus, often called the Indian variant, which is thought to be more transmissible than the initial coronavirus strain.
Bolton North East MP Mark Logan and Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham have both urged the government to offer supplies for a mass vaccination project aimed at stopping the spread of Covid in particular problem areas.
Coun David Greenhalgh, leader of Bolton's Conservative-led council, has now also joined the call, asking for 'more targeted vaccines' for all adults to allow the town's businesses to remain open.
In a statement, he said: “Yes, our rates of the Indian variant are going up, but while hospitalisations remain low and all evidence points to the effectiveness of the vaccine, the administration’s message to government is ‘do not lock us down. Do not take us out of the road map'.
“The majority of our cases are in their teens, 20s and 30s. Send us more vaccinations and allow us to vaccinate 18 years+ now, that is the answer, not further restrictions.
“We have been here before. All that will happen is people will travel outside the borough, sometimes 50 yards up the road across a boundary to access hospitality. It does not work and our hospitality is left struggling again, and on its knees.
“More targeted vaccines please and allow us to re-open.”
While infection rates in Bolton are on the rise, this has not yet contributed to any significant increase in hospital admissions.
Speaking earlier this week, Dr Rauf Munshi, clinical lead for acute medicine at the Royal Bolton Hospital, said he believes that vaccinations targeting older age groups in the town may have reduced the number of people who are vulnerable to severe symptoms.
"What tends to happen is the younger age groups that contract the infection don't often tend to hit our services but it's the transmission through the generations and the big impact it has on those that are vulnerable that tends to result in hospitalisation," he explained.
"So if it follows the same pattern then that's what you would expect.
"What we hope is that the vaccination programme will have allowed some form of immunity so that those that are vulnerable won't develop the type of symptoms we've seen previously requiring hospital-based care."
Boris Johnson has previously rebuffed calls for a mass vaccination programme in Bolton, saying it is something the government is considering but is not 'top of the list' of solutions.
But, the borough's public health team say they would be ready to put such a scheme in place if Whitehall gives the green light.
