Chris Whitty says new COVID-19 strain can spread ‘more quickly’

Boris Johnson has announced a slew of new restrictions across London and other parts of England just days before Christmas. Tier 4 restrictions are coming into force from December 20 following skyrocketing Covid-19 cases across the southeast of the UK.

Christmas relaxation guidelines, which were originally meant to cover a five day period, will now only apply on Christmas Day itself.

New restrictions have caused widespread anger across the UK as the Government U-turns yet again on official advice.

Some 16.4million people are now subject to Tier 4 restrictions, which essentially resemble that of the two previous full lockdowns the UK has had so far.

Social mixing will be limited to meeting one other person in an outdoor space, and all non-essential retail will close.

We will use your email address only for sending you newsletters. Please see our Privacy Notice for details of your data protection rights.

The new rules come into effect from 00.01am on December 20.

There will be a review of the rules in England on December 30.

Boris Johnson said: “I know how much emotion people invest in this time of year, and how important it is, for instance, for grandparents to see their grandchildren, for families to be together.

“So I know how disappointing this will be. But we have said throughout this pandemic that we must and we will be guided by the science.

“When the science changes, we must change our response.”

Elsewhere, Scotland announced their own change of rules, as well as Wales.

Wales is now in lockdown, and Scotland will go into lockdown on Boxing Day.

There is also a strict travel ban between Scotland and other UK countries.

DON’T MISS
Tier 4 fines: How much could you be fined for breaking Christmas rules [EXPLAINER]
‘This is NOT the worst’ Chris Whitty on why we need to be optimistic [INSIGHT]
New Covid variant TAKES OVER as super-infections mutant strain spreads [REPORT]

Can you still have a support bubble in Tier 4?

Support bubbles are still allowed in Tier 4 areas, and are permitted in every Tier across England.

Support bubbles are still allowed to mix indoors unlike anyone else.

They are also allowed to have overnight stays between the two households involved in the support bubble.

The Government website reads: “You must not meet socially indoors with family or friends unless they are part of your household or support bubble.”

What is a support bubble?

You can form a support bubble with another household if any of the following apply to you:

• you are the only adult in your household (any other members of the household having been under 18 on 12 June 2020), or are an under 18-year-old living without any adults
• you live with someone with a disability who requires continuous care and there is no other adult living in the household
• you live with a child under 1, or who was under 1 on 2 December 2020
• you live with a child under 5, or who was under 5 on 2 December 2020, with a disability

Source: Read Full Article