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Woman handed £10,000 fine for throwing 30th birthday marquee party for more than 50 people

Event tent in the evening with bright paper lanterns
Police called to the house in Bestwood, Nottinghamshire, found a marquee with more than 50 guests at a 30th birthday party. (Stock image: Getty)

A woman has been slapped with a £10,000 fine for hosting a 30th birthday party in a marquee with more than 50 guests.

Nottinghamshire Police said it had "no choice" but to hand the woman the maximum fine for breaching coronavirus restrictions after officers discovered the "large gathering" in the marquee.

The force said it had received reports that a party was taking place, with more than 50 people gathered at a property in St Emmanuel View, Bestwood, Nottinghamshire around 8.30pm on Friday (23 April 2021).

When officers arrived, they found a marquee set up at the back of the property for the birthday celebration.

The woman who had organised the party was handed a £10,000 fine in line with COVID rules.

In August 2020, the government announced fines of £10,000 for people organising events involving more than 30 people, in a bid to crack down on large gatherings and illegal raves.

Assistant Chief Constable Gerard Milano said: "We have no wish to break up people’s fun but the rules are really clear and they are there to protect us all, and where there are clear and deliberate breaches of the regulations, like in this case, we have no choice but to take action.

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"We will continue to respond to reports like this and act accordingly, and we will continue to engage, explain, encourage and, when necessary, take action as we move forward with the government’s roadmap.

"The majority of people have been following the rules and as a result we have seen the number of positive cases of COVID in our area dramatically drop."

He said the vaccine roll-out was helping stop the virus but reminded people: "we are most certainly not out of the woods yet".

"The only way we will be able to deal with this, avoid another lockdown and ensure that progress is irreversible, is to stick to the rules.

"The number of COVID cases in Nottinghamshire is in line with the national average, and we want this to continue to fall in order to protect the NHS and to ensure lives are saved.

"Like we have said many times before the vast majority of residents here have responded brilliantly to the pandemic and followed the rules, and my ask is that we all continue to do this as we go forward."

Watch: How England will leave lockdown