Thurrock Council Leader, Rob Gledhill, has responded to speculation in the media about the local COVID alert levels and made clear the position for Thurrock.

Mr Gledhill said: “Thurrock has the 126th lowest rate of infection out of 149 local authorities nationwide, therefore the government’s announcement today that we are in Tier 1 - Medium alert level is wholly appropriate for us based on the current evidence.

“We have a far lower rate of infection than most councils in the country, fortunately we have very few of our residents in hospital and even more fortunate is that we have had no residents die of COVID-19 since the middle of July.

“Thurrock’s residents have done an excellent job in controlling the spread of the virus and I would encourage them to remain vigilant and follow the government rules and guidance.

“Whilst we are not being complacent and will continue to keep the data under review, Thurrock has a comprehensive plan in place to help control the rate of infection in Thurrock, this was praised by Public Health England East today. There is no reason for us to consider requesting a higher alert level at this time”