Boris Johnson confirms new three-tier system of local lockdowns for England

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4 years ago

Boris Johnson has confirmed a new three-tier system of coronavirus restrictions is going to be introduced in England – with Liverpool’s pubs and bars to close as a result of the city being put under the strictest rules.

The country will be divided into three Local COVID Alert Levels – “medium”, “high” and “very high” – depending on local infection rates.

The move, planned to come into force on Wednesday, is aimed at simplifying the range of different COVID-19 restrictions that were already in place across various parts of England.

There were 13,972 new cases of coronavirus in the UK announced on Monday, with 50 more deaths recorded of people who tested positive within the previous 28 days.

The prime minister warned the “stark reality” of a second wave of coronavirus infections had seen the number of cases quadruple in the last three weeks, with more people now in hospital with the disease than had been before the UK entered its national lockdown in March.

However, Mr Johnson told MPs he did not believe it would be the “right course” to put the country back into national lockdown due to the impact of shutting schools on children’s education and the harm to the economy of closing a vast swathe of businesses.