As the result of a new variant of Covid-19, which the Chief Scientific Advisers believe is 70% more transmissible, the Prime Minister has announced a new Tier 4.
I have requested a briefing on local numbers so that I can interrogate these facts, but in the meantime the decision has been taken on the advice of Public Health England to place Surrey in Tier 4. Here are the headline restrictions:
- You must stay at home, apart from limited exemptions set out in law
- You must work from home if you can, but may travel to work if this is not possible, for example in the construction and manufacturing sectors
- Individuals can only meet one person from another household in an outdoor public space
- You should not enter or leave Tier 4 areas, and Tier 4 residents must not stay overnight away from home
- Non-essential retail, indoor gyms and leisure facilities, personal care services, accommodation, and hospitality (aside from sales by takeaway, drive through, or delivery) must close
- Unlike the November national restrictions, communal worship can continue to take place in Tier 4 areas
- Christmas bubbles will *not* be permitted. This means that you must not meet anyone outside of your household over the festive period, including on Christmas Day (apart from if you are part of a support bubble, which remain unaffected)
These measures come into effect from 00:01 on Sunday 20 December and will last for two-week periods, with the first review due on 30 December. More details on Tier 4 restrictions can be found here.
I will be speaking to Ministers about this shortly and will share more information as soon as I have it. As ever, if you have any questions, you can email me by clicking here.
