As the country prepares to move out of lockdown and into a toughened regional tier system of restrictions, debate has been raging over which level London should be placed into.
Rising infections in the capital, in contrast to most other areas in England, have raised concerns the city may be plunged into the harshest tier three measures.
Under Boris Johnson’s new system, pubs and restaurants in the highest alert level will only be able to offer takeaway and delivery services, while indoor entertainment, hotels and other accommodation will close.
Those living in areas designated tier two will have to follow rules previously reserved for those in the strictest level, meaning pubs and bars will remain closed unless operating as restaurants, with alcohol only served as part of a ‘substantial meal’ until 10pm before closing at 11pm.
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Senior Tories, including Sir Iain Duncan Smith, last night called for the capital to be placed in the lowest category, telling The Telegraph: ‘London must be put into tier one.
‘London is dominant in the economy and we need to get it back to work immediately.’
Kensington MP Felicity Buchan also urged the Government to put London into ‘the lowest tier possible’.
Speaking in the Commons, she said: ‘London is the engine of this country’s economy and my central London constituency is suffering hard.
‘As of Friday, London has a substantially lower case rate than the English average, coming in at 75 points lower, and my constituency was 125 points lower.
‘Will (Matt Hancock) assure me that London will come out at the lowest tier possible given the health circumstances?”
Mr Hancock replied: ‘I can assure (Ms Buchan) that London will come out at the tier that is necessary and appropriate based on the public health evidence.’
According to Whitehall sources, the lowest tier one measures will be reserved for a select few – mainly rural – regions, according to the Daily Mail.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has said he anticipates that the city will move into tier two once lockdown ends next week.
He told LBC: ‘It’s a bit early to say yet, but based on the numbers that I’ve seen, which is a slowdown of the virus spreading, it’s coming down in parts of London in a couple of boroughs.’
Meanwhile, leaders in the northwest have argued for consistency across entire country, suggesting London and the southeast deserve to be placed under the most stringent tier three restrictions.
What are the rules for the new three-tier system?
The country will return to a regional tiered approach when the current lockdown ends on December 2 – but more areas will face tougher restrictions than under the previous regime.
Here is what will and will not be allowed under each tier.
– Tier 1
Those living under tier one will be allowed to meet a maximum of six friends or family outdoors or indoors.
Bars, pubs and restaurants will operate table service only, and must stop taking orders at 10pm, before closing at 11pm.
Retail and personal care – such as hairdressers and beauty salons – can reopen, and indoor entertainment venues – such as cinemas, theatres, bowling alleys and casinos – will be allowed to stay open.
In tier one, the stay home message is being lifted although people will still be encouraged to minimise their movements and to work from home where possible.
Overnight stays will be permitted if they are limited to a support bubble, household or up to six people.
Places of worship can reopen, but people must not interact with more than six people.
Fifteen guests will be allowed at weddings and civil partnerships, increasing to 30 for funerals.
Classes and organised adult sport can take place outdoors, but must follow the rule of six indoors.
Large events including sport and live performances will be open to the public but limited to 50% capacity or 4,000 outdoors and 1,000 indoors.
– Tier 2
No mixing of households indoors aside from support bubbles will be allowed, with a maximum gathering of six permitted outdoors.
Pubs and bars will remain closed unless operating as restaurants, with alcohol only served as part of a ‘substantial meal’ until 10pm, before venues must close at 11pm.
All retail, leisure and personal care services are able to reopen.
People will be encouraged to reduce the number of journeys they make and to avoid travelling into tier three areas, except for reasons of education or work.
Overnight stays will only be permitted for those in the same household or support bubble and accommodation can open.
Places of worship can reopen, but people must not interact with anyone outside their household or support bubble.
Fifteen guests will be allowed at weddings and civil partnerships, increasing to 30 for funerals.
Classes and organised sport can take place outdoors but not indoors if there is any interaction between two different households.
Large events including sport and live performances will be open to the public but limited to 50% capacity or 2,000 outdoors and 1,000 indoors.
– Tier 3
Groups of six will only be able to meet in outdoor public spaces, such as parks and sports courts – but not in private gardens.
Hospitality will be closed except for takeaway in these areas.
Indoor entertainment venues – such as cinemas, theatres, bowling alleys and casinos – will remain closed.
People will be told to avoid travelling out of the area other than where necessary and to reduce the number of journeys.
No overnight stays will be permitted outside the local area, except for work or education, with accommodation to stay closed.
Weddings and civil partnerships can resume but with only 15 guests, increasing to 30 for funerals. Wedding receptions are banned in tier three.
Places of worship can reopen, but people must not interact with anyone outside their household or support bubble.
Classes and organised adult sport can take place outdoors, but people are advised to avoid higher-risk contact activity.
Elite and live sport will still be banned but drive-in events will be permitted.
However, the ultimate decision may hinge upon what the situation is in the capital’s worst-affected areas under plans to adopt a ‘one London’ approach.
Asking Mr Johnson which tier London would be put into, Conservative MP Bob Blackman said: ‘I understand he is going to require London to be in one regional tier, but as of the end of last week the rate of infection in the worst-affected borough was a 372 per 100,000 but in the least-affected area at 125 per 100,000.
‘What will drive which tier London goes into, the position in the worst-affected area, the middle or the least-affected area?’
Mr Johnson replied: ‘(He) will have to wait until the announcements by the Health Secretary on Thursday about exactly who goes into which tier.
‘The point about London is that although it’s very diverse and massive, 650 square miles or so, it is held together by a very dense mass transit system and although there are fewer people on it right now, the transmission within London means that it’s quite difficult to separate one bit of London from another.’
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the Government will decide which tier each region is placed into on December 2 based on ‘the number of cases’ in each area.
Particular attention will be paid to the numbers of over 60s testing positive for the virus, he added.
Mr Shapps told BBC Breakfast that although half the country may be placed in the strictest tier three alert level, this will still allow for more freedoms than the national lockdown currently in place for England.
He said: ‘I think it is the case that we do need to be a bit tighter on the tiers – tier three in more places is a strong possibility – but there’s still a difference between that and what we’re doing now.
‘For example, in terms of the number of people that can meet outside in a public place, and a number of other things.
‘We’ve been living through this nightmare for a long time now, we all know the only way to defeat this virus is, I’m afraid, to keep people apart and separate from the most natural thing, which is human contact.
‘You can only breach that in a certain number of places and I think we’ve made our decisions as a country that that has to be for things like education and work whilst we get through this winter.’
MORE: How does the new Covid tier system compare to the old one?
MORE: When will people find out which tier they are in after lockdown?
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