UK awaits Covid tier changes after Christmas confusion
Towns and cities around the UK are waiting with bated breath this morning to see if they will be moved into a different tier of coronavirus restrictions.
Government officials met to review the three tier system yesterday, with health secretary Matt Hancock due to announce any changes later today.
The official update comes with London and surrounding counties already having been put into tier three due to a rise in infection rates.
That means that there are now an estimated 34m people living under the highest levels of restrictions.
However, leaders across the north, which largely falls under the top tier, are hopeful of being moved down to a lower tier after a fall in infection rates.
Greater Manchester’s mayor Andy Burnham said that there was a “clear case” for the urban area being moved to lower restrictions.
But NHS leaders warned that relaxing restrictions too early could lead to further deaths from the disease.
The review comes after people were yesterday urged to isolate for five days before travelling for Christmas.
PM Boris Johnson urged the country to keep any celebrations “small” and “short” as attempts to find a common strategy for the whole of the UK fell apart.
While Johnson decided to stick to plans to relax restrictions to allow three households to meet for five days from 23 December, the leaders of Wales and Scotland announced different plans.
Welsh first minister Mark Drakeford said the country will toughen current guidelines allowing three households to mix over Christmas, announcing that Wales will limit gatherings to two households.
Scotland will also diverge from the current guidelines, with first minister Nicola Sturgeon announcing a limit on gatherings between different households to just one day on Christmas Day.