Christmas cancelled as London and South east is on Tier 4 restrictions
France will stop lorry movements from the UK for 48 hours amid fresh concerns over the spread of a new strain of coronavirus in the UK, although freight from France to the UK will be allowed, but fears that lorry drivers will not travel to avoid being stuck in the UK.
The Port of Dover is closed to traffic leaving the UK “until further notice” due to border restrictions in France according to port authorities.
Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury said he had spent Christmases alone and had “no illusions about how dark it feels”.
The cancellation of Christmas plans for millions of people across the UK will bring “intense pain” but there is “hope” for the future,
As the new Covid-19 variant is out of control the government does not want to cancel Christmas but it is “our duty” to act. A strict new lockdown in London, the South East and East of England could last for months, Matt Hancock said.
Millions of people across the UK have seen their Christmas plan severely interrupted or scrapped.
On Sunday the number of recorded daily infections in the ULK surpassed 34, 958 new cases, the figure nearly twice the number of cases 18, 447 reported a week ago.
Public Health England Director Yvonne Doyle said “This sharp and sudden increase is of serious concern”.
“Most of the new cases reported today are concentrated in London and the South East, although it is too early to tell if this is linked o the new variant”,
More than 40 countries have banned UK arrivals because of concerns about the spread of the new variant of coronavirus. Flight from the UK is being suspended to countries across the world including Spain, India, and Hong Kong. France shut its border with the UK for 48 hours, Eurostar trains to Belgium are not operating. Other countries also imposed a ban on UK arrivals including Belgium, Canada, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Ireland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Poland, Sweden, Denmark, Austria, Finland, Bulgaria, Malta, Croatia, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Switzerland over the new coronavirus variant.
The new variant could increase the R number substantially which indicates if an epidemic is growing or shrinking by between 0.4 and 0.9 per cent according to newly released data from the government’s New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group.
The planned relaxation of rules for Christmas has been scrapped for those under England’s tougher new tier-four measures, while the rest of England, Wales, and Scotland relaxed indoor mixing rules over the holiday have been cut from five days to Christmas Day only.
Mr. Hancock said it was “important for everybody to act like they might have the virus because we need to bring the new variant under control”.
The new tier 4 was introduced after a new variant of coronavirus caused cases to soar.
Tier Four restrictions
Tier Four is similar to England’s second national lockdown and applied to all 32 boroughs in London and the City of London, Kent, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Surrey (excluding Waverley), Gosport, Havant, Portsmouth, Rother, Hastings, and the east of England (Bedford, Central Bradford, Milton Keynes, Luton, Peterborough, Hertfordshire, and Essex ( excluding Colchester, Uttlesford, and Tendring),
Residents told to stay at home, with exemptions for those who have to travel for work or education.
Household mixing indoors is not allowed, unless you live them, or they are part of your existing support bubble.
All non-essential retail to close, including hairdressers, nail bars, indoor gyms, and leisure facilities.
Social mixing cuts to meeting one person in an open public space.
Communal religious worship is still allowed.
These measures will be reviewed on 30 December 2020.