BRITS have reacted with fury as Christmas was cancelled at the last minute – after millions shelled out for food, booze and gifts.
London and the south-east is heading into a brand new Tier 4 – similar to full lockdown – with all non-essential shops closed, travel banned and household mixing prohibited.
It comes just days after Boris Johnson said shutting down celebrations would be “frankly inhuman”.
But during a press conference this afternoon, he revealed tougher measures are needed to combat a rogue new strain of Covid – known as VUI202012/01 – which spreads 50 per cent faster.
It comes as…
- Boris Johnson today cancelled Christmas for millions as he put London, the South East and East in Tier 4 lockdown
- The new variant strain of the virus which causes Covid-19 may be up to 70% more transmissible – and could increase the R value by 0.4
- Christmas bubbles in Tiers 1, 2 and 3 have been cut to just 24 hours on December 25
- Non-essential shops and gyms in Tier 4 areas must be closed from midnight
- Those in Tier 4 will be able to meet only one other person outdoors
Meanwhile, cases in the UK are surging, with the weekly average rate up 66 per cent in just two weeks.
In London, the number of positive tests has doubled – and 60 per cent of those are caused the new strain.
And now a ‘stay at home’ order has been issued for some regions.
Affected areas include Kent, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Surrey (excluding Waverley), the boroughs of Gosport, Havant, Portsmouth, Rother and Hastings, all 32 London boroughs and the city of London.
Bedford, Central Bedfordshire, Milton Keynes, Luton, Peterborough
Hertfordshire and Essex (excluding Colchester, Uttlesford and Tendring) are also Tier 4.
The PM’s U-turn has caused fury among families who have already made plans, booked travel and bought food and gifts for much longed-for reunions.
Many have taken to social media to vent their anger.
One devastated user said: “I’m sorry but my family have spent money on food for my family who are all coming in the next few days.
“I see my family twice a year and I am absolutely devastated like I cannot explain how upsetting and disheartening this is.”
Another added: “If you lock us all over over Christmas – meaning families who have spent hundreds of pounds preparing to see loved ones – then you have proven what an utterly incompetent leader you and your cabinet are.
“Shame on you.”
A third said: “After job loss, emergency international move, illness, breakdown, and everything else, I just desperately needed something to look forward to.
“Honeymoon fitted the bill, but was cancelled three times.
“Christmas was the next best thing. I spent weeks working on menus, precautions.”
England could yet follow Wales and Northern Ireland in announcing a national lockdowns after Christmas.
The Welsh government broke ranks with the rest of the UK by scaling back Christmas bubbles, in effect from December 23 to 27, from three to two households.
In England, people in Tiers 1, 2 and 3 can only mix in bubbles for Christmas Day itself.
Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty this afternoon confirmed that the new variant is more contagious than previous strains.
He said: “As announced on Monday, the UK has identified a new variant of Covid-19 through Public Health England’s genomic surveillance.
“As a result of the rapid spread of the new variant, preliminary modelling data and rapidly rising incidence rates in the South East, the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (NERVTAG) now consider that the new strain can spread more quickly.
“We have alerted the World Health Organisation and are continuing to analyse the available data to improve our understanding.
“There is no current evidence to suggest the new strain causes a higher mortality rate or that it affects vaccines and treatments although urgent work is underway to confirm this.
“Given this latest development it is now more vital than ever that the public continue to take action in their area to reduce transmission.”
