Police flee crowd celebrating Pakistan Independence Day - Money

A group of heavily-outnumbered police officers fled a mob of hundreds of revellers attending an illegal party celebrating Pakistan Independence Day in locked-down Manchester.

Party goers gathered in Manchester’s so-called ‘Curry Mile’ on Friday night, in breach of the city’s reinforced lockdown rules which restrict outdoor gatherings to up to six people with social distancing enforced.

Police were eventually able to clear crowds after shutting the road – but not before a mob of revellers surrounded a line of officers from all angles while hurling abuse and chanting ‘Pakistan’.

In the clip, several men crowded a female officer and shouted in her face before she was briefly separated from her colleagues.

Officers then closed ranks and forced the crowd back, as the policewoman held her hands up calling for calm.

A group of heavily-outnumbered police officers fled a mob (pictured) after failing to break up an illegal party celebrating Pakistan Independence Day in locked-down Manchester

The officers are surrounded on all sides by the mob – some of whom grin amid the chaos – who continue to jostle with each other.

As the sound of air horns blare in the background, chants of ‘Pakistan’ and what appears to be ‘England’ ring out from the group.

As the shouts continue, the police begin to withdraw with one officer grabbing the female police officer by the arm and pulling her away.

The crowd jeers as the police hound them off the road.

Police eventually broke up the gathering and no arrests were made.

Lockdown restrictions on social gatherings remain in Greater Manchester and some parts of northern England – despite measures being relaxed elsewhere in the country.

The extra rules were enforced on July 31 following a local spike in Covid-19 cases.

The officers are surrounded on all sides by the mob – some of whom grin amid the chaos – who continue to jostle with each other

Afzal Khan, MP for Manchester Gorton, also slammed the celebrations on Twitter

Asian Brits are up to FIVE times more likely to catch coronavirus than white people, official data reveals

By Stephen Matthews Health Editor For Mailonline and Connor Boyd Health Reporter For Mailonline

Asian people are up to five times more likely to catch the coronavirus than white people, according to data from a government-run surveillance scheme.

An Office for National Statistics (ONS) report released today revealed seven out of 1,510 Brits identifying as Asian swabbed positive for Covid-19 — a rate of around 0.46 per cent.

For comparison, the rate was 0.12 per cent for white people. The ONS concluded the risk was slightly higher than the percentage difference and that Asians were 4.8 times more likely to test positive.

No cases were diagnosed in any other ethnic groups in England between June 8 and August 2, which is when the data relates to. But the body claimed black Britons were twice as likely to be diagnosed, based on older figures.

Results of antibody tests — which tell if someone has had the disease in the past — showed a similar discrepancy between ethnicity, with just 4.8 per cent of white people testing positive for the substances. In comparison, the rate was around 10.8 per cent for Asians and 9.5 per cent for Black Britons.

Numerous reports have found black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) people in Britain face a higher risk of dying if they catch coronavirus than white people.

Experts can’t pinpoint exactly why this is the case, but it could be down to the fact ethnic minorities are more likely to be poor, use public transport more often and work in public-facing jobs – all three of which make them more prone to interacting with strangers and catching the disease.

It comes after local public health officials in swathes of locked-down parts of northern England revealed that South Asian communities were being disproportionately infected.

Oldham, the UK’s current coronavirus hotspot, had to rollback lockdown restrictions last week after a huge spike among its Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities. Arooj Shah, deputy leader of Oldham Council, said these groups account for up to two thirds of overall new cases in the Manchester town. Eighty-five per cent of new Covid-19 infections in Blackburn with Darwen – which has also had to retreat back into a tougher lockdown – have been among people from South Asian heritage.

Epidemiologists have previously told MailOnline that some communities which do not speak English as their first language were not following social distancing rules as stringently because public health messaging was not reaching them.

Professor Paul Hunter, an epidemiologist at the University of East Anglia, and Gabriel Scally, professor of public health at the university of Bristol, said there had been a ‘breakdown in communication’ and that ‘language barriers were certainly an issue’.

Greater Manchester Police said it had received 2,459 emergency calls on Friday, compared to 1,590 on the same day last year.

Detective Chief Inspector Carol Hobson said: ‘It is really disappointing to see behaviour of this type whilst we, as a community, are trying to combat coronavirus and keep each other safe.

‘Friday night is one of the busiest in terms of demand on the police service and incidents like this one pull invaluable resources away from other people who may need the police more desperately. These blatant breaches slow us down.’

Deputy Chief Constable Ian Pilling added: ‘I can honestly say that in 30 years of policing I have never seen anything quite as outrageous as this behaviour.

‘Quite frankly, it is beyond comprehension and I am incredibly disappointed that people feel they can gather in this way – blatantly flouting the rules.’

Afzal Khan, MP for Manchester Gorton, also slammed the celebrations on Twitter.

He wrote: ‘Disappointed, frustrated, and angered with the appalling behaviour on Wilmslow Road last night.

‘Not only is antisocial behaviour of this kind deeply disrespectful to Rusholme residents, ignoring the Covid-19 regulations puts us all at risk.

‘To those who came from outside Manchester, knowing full well the Covid situation across our region, your choice to visit Rusholme last night increases the danger of spreading the virus further here and at your home.

‘You should be ashamed – you have put your loved ones at risk.’

A Greater Manchester Police spokesperson said: ‘On the evening of Friday 14 August, police attended areas of Wilmslow Road in Rusholme after reports of traffic issues and concerns regarding social distancing.

‘The area was heavily congested with pedestrians congregating in large groups and numerous vehicles driving up and down the main road in an unsafe manner.

‘On police attendance, it was necessary for the local officers to put road closures in place, to prevent access to vehicles along Wilmslow Road for the safety of the public.

‘Officers also engaged with members of the public, encouraging people to disperse.

‘Officers also engaged with businesses, who were encouraged to consider temporarily closing until the situation became more manageable.

‘GMP worked closely with a local councillor in order to engage with the community. No arrests were made.’

Meanwhile, a gathering involving hundreds of people was also seen in east London on Pakistan Independence Day – with footage showing crowds of people on the street.

Local councillor Kam Rai told the Evening Standard: ‘I am fed up of people who think social distancing and wearing face coverings do not apply to them when it’s something they want to do.

‘Let me be clear: the risk has not gone away and the disease is still deadly.’

The street party came just one day before hundreds of revellers were caught partying inside a gazebo during an illegal lockdown party in Manchester where police officers were pelted with missiles.

Shocking footage caught on Snapchat shows the ravers flouting social distancing measures as they attended the illegal rave in Gorton on August 15.

Following the incident, Greater Manchester Police confirmed that a woman, who they believe to be the party ‘organiser’, was slammed with a £100 penalty fine.

Hundreds of revellers (left and right) were filmed dancing at an illegal lockdown party in Gorton, Manchester, on August 15

During the footage, hundreds of people dance to the loud music with drinks in their hands and defy social distancing measures.

Officers arrived to the scene after receiving numerous complaints from residents on the street.

Deputy Chief Constable Ian Pilling later told Manchester Evening News that the footage was now being reviewed by police.

He added that while officers did not break up the mass gathering by force due to being hit with missiles, they did stop others from joining the party and also issued an anti-social behaviour closure notice.