The leader of Staffordshire County Council has warned local residents and businesses they have four weeks to curb the rise in Covid-19 cases as a second national lockdown comes into force.

The county has continued to see cases soar in recent weeks, with the authority saying that rates have reached almost double the national average in some areas.

Now the council's leader, Alan White, has said that the Government could impose restrictions on the county for longer than four weeks if these rates are not reduced.

He said: "If the number of cases in the county remains high then the government is likely to continue to impose restrictions in Staffordshire that will go beyond four weeks. This will affect the lives and livelihoods of more families and put businesses and jobs at risk.

"We need people to do everything they can to reduce the spread of the virus. It is going to be a difficult time, and we all need to pull together and show that Staffordshire can, and will, turn this situation around."

The council says the seven-day rate for Staffordshire is now above both the national and West Midlands rate at 344.7 per 100,000 population, with some areas of the county seeing a rate of more than 400 cases per 100,000 population.

On October 31, Staffordshire was placed in Covid High Alert, but within hours, the Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a second lockdown for the whole country.

Although schools will remain open, the government is telling people to stay home and only travel for essential purposes such as work, food shopping, exercise, education and medical appointments. All shops deemed non-essential by the government, as well as leisure and entertainment facilities are closed.

It is now illegal for people to socialise with other households indoors or in a private garden, unless they are part of a support bubble. They will only be allowed to meet with one person from another household outdoors, in a park for example.

Dr Richard Harling, the county's Director of Health and Care, said: "Despite everyone's best efforts, the numbers are continuing to rise at an alarming rate.

"While nobody wants to see much wider restrictions imposed once again, following the new rules is our best chance to bring the number of cases down, help the NHS and get these restrictions lifted as soon as possible."