This afternoon, the Prime Minister made a statement to the House of Commons outlining the Government’s plans for the post-lockdown tiered system, as well as plans for a relaxation of the rules over the immediate Christmas period.
Here’s a short run-down of what was announced:
Ending the national restrictions on 2 December:
• Thanks to the progress we’ve made on vaccines and mass testing, the stay at home order will end, collective worship can resume, and people will no longer be limited to seeing one other person in outdoor public spaces.
Re-introducing the localised approach after 2nd December, in order to keep the virus under control:
• The virus is still present, and that means we need to keep some level of restrictions on a local level. If these are not in place then it could get out of control again before vaccines and mass testing have an impact. That would put at risk all our work to date. Our principle remains it’s right to target the toughest measures in the areas where the virus is most prevalent.
Making changes to the previous tiered system:
• The 10pm closing time for hospitality has been modified to last orders at 10pm and closing time at 11pm. This allows customers to depart in a staggered way and provides greater flexibility.
• Across all tiers, non-essential retail will be able to remain open and operate in a Covid-Secure way.
• Gyms will be allowed to remain open. • Spectator sport can resume with capacity limits and social distancing, providing more consistency with indoor performances in theatres and concert halls.
Strengthening the tiers in order to keep the virus under control:
The scientific advice is also clear that, while the previous tiers reduced the R rate, they were not quite enough to bring R below 1. The tiers therefore need to be toughened in some ways to keep the virus under control:
• In tier 1, the authorities will encourage people to minimise travel and reinforce the importance of working from home where possible.
• In tier 2, alcohol may only be served in hospitality settings as part of a substantial meal.
• In tier 3, hospitality will close except for delivery and takeaway, and indoor entertainment venues must also close.
Each region will find out which Tier they’re going to be in from 2nd December on Thursday this week.
There will be a huge ramp up of rapid testing and mass testing will be rolled out in areas with particularly high infection rates.
We will find out about what the rules are around Christmas time at the end of this week once the devolved nations have agreed on a common set of measures.
