Coronavirus: Second national lockdown to come into force on Thursday
Pubs, bars, restaurants and non-essential retail in England will close from Thursday in a bid to tackle the rising number of Covid-19 cases.
Speaking at the press conference on Saturday evening Boris Johnson said that no one wants to impose these kinds of measures, but no responsible Prime Minister could ignore the evidence presented.
He also said that whilst Christmas will inevitably be different this year, tough action now could mean families may be able to be together.
The Prime Minister will update Parliament on Monday, and MPs are set to vote on the measures on Wednesday.
Belgium, France, Germany and other countries have already put in place national restrictions, following earlier local measures.
Measures lasting from Thursday until December 2
From Thursday 5 November, everyone must stay at home, and may leave only for a limited set of reasons. These include:
- For education;
- For work, if you cannot work from home;
- For exercise and recreation outdoors, with your household, support bubble or on your own with one person from another household;
- For all medical reasons, appointments and to escape injury or harm;
- To shop for food and essentials;
- And to provide care for vulnerable people, or as a volunteer.
A full set of exemptions will be set out in law.
Single-adult households will still be able to form an exclusive support bubble with one other household, and children can move between homes if their parents are separated.
Non-essential shops, leisure and entertainment venues will be closed. Click and collect services can continue and essential shops, including supermarkets, will remain open, so there is no need for anyone to stockpile.
Pubs, bars, restaurants must close, except for takeaway and delivery services.
People should work from home wherever possible. Workplaces should stay open where people cannot work from home – for example, in the construction or manufacturing sectors.
Shielding as practised in the spring will not currently be reintroduced. The clinically vulnerable, or those over the age of 60, should be especially careful to follow the rules and minimise contacts with others. Those who are clinically extremely vulnerable should not only minimise their contacts with others, but also not go to work if they are unable to work from home.
There is no exemption for staying away from home on holiday. This means people cannot travel internationally or within the UK, unless for work, education or other legally permitted exemptions. Overnight stays away from primary residences will not be allowed, except for specific exceptions including for work.
Inbound international travel will continue to be governed by the travel corridor approach, and those currently on a domestic holiday will be allowed to finish their holidays, but are still subject to the requirements in England not to go out without a reasonable excuse.
Public services, such as job centres, courts, and civil registration offices will remain open.
There is no exemption for communal worship in places of worship (except funerals and individual prayer), organised team sports, or children’s activities.
Elite sport will be allowed to continue behind closed doors as currently.
Furlough scheme to remain open until December
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, known as the furlough scheme, will remain open until December, with employees receiving 80% of their current salary for hours not worked, up to a maximum of £2,500. The cost for employers of retaining workers will be reduced compared to the current scheme, which ends today.
Education
As the Prime Minister and Education Secretary have said, keeping young people in education is a national priority so early years settings, schools, colleges and universities will all remain open. Parents and carers should make sure their children keep attending school. However, universities and adult learning providers should consider increasing online provision where possible.
Parents will still be able to access registered childcare and other childcare activities where reasonably necessary to enable parents to work. Parents are also able to form a childcare bubble with another household for the purposes of informal childcare, where the child is 13 or under.
Graham Guest, principal and chief executive of Telford College, said: “It will be business as usual at our college next week.
“We already have stringent Covid-19 safeguarding systems in place on campus, and a significant proportion of our curriculum is now being delivered remotely.
“Our priority throughout all of this difficult year has been to get the balance right - keeping disruption to learning to a minimum to protect student achievement, while ensuring the safety of students and staff.”
Mr Guest said he would be meeting with unions and Telford College’s senior managers on Monday to canvass their views and work collectively to ensure staff and students are safe, and able to achieve.
Provision for non-Covid healthcare
Ministers are also clear that it is vital to keep the provision for non-Covid healthcare needs going. Unless clinicians tell patients otherwise, they should continue to use the NHS, get scans and other tests, turn up for all appointments and collect medicines and treatments.
