Boris Johnson has been warned that riots may erupt if he keeps some areas in tier three.

He and other senior government ministers were warned yesterday evening that protests could turn violent in areas where Covid rates are falling such as Manchester, Coventry, Warwickshire, Solihull and Leeds.

One political insider in the Midlands told The Sun: ‘If they don’t come out of Tier 3 there will be riots. They have brought their rates down immeasurably, there is no reason for them not to come out.’

He also faces clashes with northern MPs, mayors and council leaders if he refuses to release some areas from the harshest measures.

Despite the dire warnings, most places are expected to stay in their current tiers. A decision is expected to be announced in parliament today.

A Whitehall insider said: ‘I would be surprised if any area goes down a tier.’

An assessment meeting was chaired last night by Health Secretary Matt Hancock, after figures revealed daily cases had spiked by 50% in the UK.

Another 25,161 cases have been recorded in the last 24 hours, while 612 people were reported to have died with the virus on Wednesday.

The prime minister refused calls to ‘cancel Christmas’ yesterday – despite leading medics warning his decision will ‘cost many lives’.

At a Downing Street press conference, the Conservative politician said a planned five-day relaxation period at Christmas would still go ahead – but urged people to take precautions.

He has suggested avoiding overnight stays, cutting contacts before meeting people, spending less time together and avoiding travelling from a high-risk area to a lower risk one. 

Admitting that the situation with Covid-19 was ‘worse’ than when the rules were set, Mr Johnson said: ‘While it would not be right to criminalise people who made plans and simply want to spend time with their loved ones, we’re collectively, across the UK, governments at every level, asking you to think hard and in detail about the days ahead.

‘We’re keeping the laws the same but we all want to send the same message: a smaller Christmas is going to be a safer Christmas and a shorter Christmas is a safer Christmas. ‘When we say three households can meet on five days I want to stress these are maximums and not targets to aim for.’

England’s Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty also told people to ‘keep it small, keep it short and keep it local’ last night.

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