MILLIONS more people will be plunged into Tier 4 from tonight, Matt Hancock has announced today. The Health Secretary said he was forced to take action as a result of the rapidly-spreading mutant variant of the virus, which saw a record 53,000 infections recorded yesterday. Shops, indoor activities, gyms and hairdressers will be shut in all […]
MILLIONS more people will be plunged into Tier 4 from tonight, Matt Hancock has announced today.
ROGER HARRIS PHOTOGRAPHYMatt Hancock announced the news to the House of Commons[/caption]
Areas changing Tiers
To move into Tier 4:
Leicester City
Leicestershire (Oadby and Wigston, Harborough, Hinckley and Bosworth, Blaby, Charnwood, North West Leicestershire, Melton)
Lincolnshire (City of Lincoln, Boston, South Kesteven, West Lindsey, North Kesteven, South Holland, East Lindsey)
Northamptonshire (Corby, Daventry, East Northamptonshire, Kettering, Northampton, South Northamptonshire, Wellingborough)
Derby and Derbyshire (Derby, Amber Valley, South Derbyshire, Bolsover, North East Derbyshire, Chesterfield, Erewash, Derbyshire Dales, High Peak)
Nottingham and Nottinghamshire (Gedling, Ashfield, Mansfield, Rushcliffe, Bassetlaw, Newark and Sherwood, Nottinghamshire, Broxtowe)
Birmingham and Black Country (Dudley, Birmingham, Sandwell, Walsall, Wolverhampton)
Coventry
Solihull
Warwickshire (Rugby, Nuneaton and Bedworth, Warwick, North Warwickshire, Stratford-upon-Avon)
Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent (East Staffordshire, Stafford, South Staffordshire, Cannock Chase, Lichfield, Staffordshire Moorlands, Newcastle under Lyme, Tamworth, Stoke-on-Trent)
Lancashire (Burnley, Pendle, Blackburn with Darwen, Ribble Valley, Blackpool, Preston, Hyndburn, Chorley, Fylde, Lancaster, Rossendale, South Ribble, West Lancashire, Wyre)
Cheshire and Warrington (Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Warrington)
Cumbria (Eden, Carlisle, South Lakeland, Barrow-in-Furness, Copeland, Allerdale)
The Health Secretary told MPs today all of the North East of England, the South West and most of the Midlands would be thrown into Tier 4.
All of the North-east of England, including Cumbria, Cheshire, Warrington, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Blackpool, and Blackburn with Darwen will be thrown into Tier 4.
Most of the West Midlands and all of the East Midlands, except Rutland will be put into Tier 4.
And large parts of the South West will also be plunged into the toughest measures as well.
Today’s announcement means that all of England is living under Tier 3 or Tier 4 lockdown – apart from 2,000 people living on the Isles of Scilly.
Mr Hancock told MPs most new cases are from the new variant, which is as much as 56 per cent more contagious.
He said: “Yesterday alone, 52, 135 new cases were registered, the majority of which are believed to be the new variant.
“Unfortunately this new variant is spreading across most of England.”
The Health Secretary warned “case rates are doubling fast” and there are “significant” challenges to the NHS.
He said: “Sharply rising cases and the hospitalisations that follow demonstrate the need to act where the virus is spreading.”
It came as:
50,000 cases and more than 900 deaths were recorded today – the highest death figure since April
And a change in strategy is expected to take place so people can get the vaccine sooner – with ministers to prioritise the first jab and give the second within 12 weeks
School pupils in some years are likely to be delayed to returning to the classroom thanks to the spike in cases
A group of nine council leaders in the North East called for a nationwide national lockdown
Mr Hancock also vowed that the Government would followed a tiered system and avoid a third national lockdown as far as possible.
“Where it is possible to keep some of the freedoms we all cherish, we should,” he told the House of Commons.
When pushed if he would introduce a level above the highest Tier 4 restrictions, he insisted: “I’m not announcing anything above Tier 4 today, no.”
Nationally, Essex is the worst-affected region of England.
How rules differ between Tier 3 and 4
In Tier 4, you must stay at home and should only leave to travel for education, childcare or exercise. And you can only meet one other person outdoors
Brits in Tier 3 can leave the house as they choose, provided they follow social distancing guidelines. Households are banned from mixing indoors, but you can meet up to six people in public outdoor spaces such as parks.
All shops, including non-essential retail such as toys, clothing and homeware, remain open in Tier 3 areas but are shut in Tier 4.
Hairdressers, barbers, beauty salons and all entertainment venues are open in Tier 3, providing they operate under Covid safety guidelines – but must shut in Tier 4
Gyms are open in Tier 3, but only for individual exercise with classes halted. They must remain shut in Tier 4
Pubs, bars and restaurants remain closed in both tiers but can offer delivery or take-out options.
In Tier 4, travel for some reasons – including education, childcare or an emergency – will be allowed.
People in Tier 4 and Tier 3 can still go to work – but only as a last resort if they cannot work from home
London News PicturesPeople will have to stay home from New Year’s Eve – tomorow[/caption]
All the areas already in Tier 4
A list of the areas in Tier 4 at present are:
Kent
Buckinghamshire
Berkshire
Surrey (excluding Waverley)
The boroughs of Gosport, Havant, Portsmouth, Rother and Hastings
All 32 London boroughs and the city of London.
Bedford, Central Bedfordshire, Milton Keynes, Luton, Peterborough
Hertfordshire
Essex (excluding Colchester, Uttlesford and Tendring).
A full list of the areas that joined Tier 4 on Boxing Day are:
Sussex
Oxfordshire
Norfolk
Cambridgeshire
Those parts of Essex not yet in Tier 4
Waverley
Hampshire
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