POLICE will not “stand-by and allow blatant breaches” of the coronavirus restrictions after receiving hundreds of calls last weekend.

Residents in Bolton cannot meet other households in their homes or gardens as part of the law that was rolled out after a spike of covid-19 cases in Greater Manchester and other areas of the north.

Police now have the power to hand out fines through fixed penalty notices, starting at £100.

A “major incident” was declared in the region last weekend as parts of efforts to ensure people complied with the rules.

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) say they will be deploying extra resources this weekend after the force received 883 calls relating to coronavirus from Friday, July 31 to Sunday, August 2.

A total of 754 of the calls were reports of house parties, street parties and other gatherings.

This is up 1,614 per cent from the weekend before when officers received just 44 calls in relation to these breaches.

GMP want people to take the restrictions “more seriously” or they may see further ones being implemented.

Deputy Chief Constable Ian Pilling said: “We will not stand-by and allow blatant breaches of the legislation to happen across our communities.

"We will of course engage with the public and explain the new legislation, and encourage people to take personal responsibility for their own safety and that of others.

"If, however, people continue to flout the regulations and demonstrate a blatant disregard for the health warnings, this is an offence and we will take action.

"We completely understand that the news of these latest restrictions is hugely disheartening for many of us across the region.

"But it’s really important that we stick to them in order to reduce the infection rates and keep all of our loved ones safe.

"Coronavirus doesn't discriminate. Anyone – young or old – can get ill and it’s incredibly important that we continue to take this seriously.

"Last weekend, after the new guidance had been issued, we received hundreds of calls in relation to house parties and large gatherings.

"Not only does this put significant strain on already stretched resources, but it also poses a huge public health risk.

“We’ve also seen an increase in crime levels since the easing of lockdown measures were announced, and now the demand has reached even greater levels due to blatant breaches of COVID legislation.

DCC Pilling also praised the public for following the rules and "doing their very best despite the challenges faced".

He said: "We want to say a huge thank you to every single one of you who has been following the guidance and doing their very best, despite the challenges faced, to keep each one of us safe.

We recognise that this hasn’t been easy, but we know that one day we’ll look back at this period of time with a huge sense of pride.”