Councils in the Black Country will return to the High Court on Wednesday 27 January to seek the renewal of an injunction banning car cruising in the region for a further three years. 
As well as an extension to the existing injunction, the application further seeks to vary the order to include spectators as participants as well, and not only those people organising and taking part in car cruises. 
As necessary during COVID-19, the hearing will take place remotely and members of the public are invited to submit their views regarding the car cruising injunction and the application to extend and vary the terms of the order by emailing litigation@wolverhampton.gov.uk no later than 4pm on Thursday 21 January 2021. Comments received will be presented as evidence to the High Court.

The government announced on Saturday (19 December) that plans to relax restrictions over Christmas have changed. The threat of a new strain of the coronavirus, which appears to be spreading quickly, was also highlighted. 

The directive from central government is that Christmas bubbles can now be formed on Christmas Day (25 December) only. A maximum of three households can mix but overnight stays are not permitted.  

The briefing also announced that, while Walsall remains in tier 3 Very High alert, a new tier 4 has been introduced. 

Tier 4 is now in effect across London and large parts of the south east and Wales. Travel is not allowed in and out of tier 4 areas.  While the new strain of COVID-19 was detected first in London and the South East, this variant is spreading rapidly across the country. Anybody who has recently travelled to Walsall from London and the South East should take extra care and self-isolate for at least 10 days when they arrive. This means remaining inside the house where they’re staying for the whole 10 days. Other people who live in the house do not need to self-isolate unless anyone gets symptoms but no visitors should be allowed in that house at all, even on Christmas Day.  

2020 has been an unusual year. As it began we saw how the increase of COVID-19 had been affecting communities across the world but from March this year the pandemic reached the UK and resulted in changes impacting everyday life for us all. With two national lockdowns and the government putting tier based restrictions in place, we have all had to come to terms with what this means for us, for our families, our friends, our loved ones and also for our community as we settle into a new ‘normal’. Now as we come to the end of the year we take the opportunity to reflect on what we have faced and how we have responded to the challenges over the last few months.