BORIS Johnson will give a press conference this evening after the mutant Covid strain ripped through London and the South East of England causing chaos as the French border was shut down.
The PM will speak from Downing Street as over 16 million people were thrown into a new Tier 4 over the weekend, plunging a third of England into chaos just days before Christmas.
The PM is expected to speak at 5pm this evening.
Mr Johnson was forced to tell people living within Tier 4 areas to cancel their Christmas plans and stay at home once again.
And Brits across the country have been given “stay local” orders, to stop the virus spreading.
Christmas bubbles were almost entirely scrapped with those living in Tiers 1, 2 and 3 only able to meet loved ones for one day.
The super-spreading new mutation of Covid-19 could be as much as 70 per cent more contagious, Government boffins said over the weekend.
Mr Johnson said it was with “bitter regret” he was having to backtrack on promises of Christmas reunions.
To add to the chaos, France closed all routes by air, sea and the Eurotunnel from the UK, and lorries snaked for as many as seven miles through Kent trying to get to the border.
Mr Johnson is chairing a Cobra meeting this afternoon to address the scenes of mayhem at the border.
Boris faces a nightmare before Christmas today as:
- France shut the border with the UK – forcing lorries with goods to line up for hours on both sides
- It was feared food supplies may be affected within hours – with Sainsburys warning about veg and fruit in the run up to Christmas
- Millions were stranded or unable to travel after a string of countries banned flights to the UK over the new coronavirus strain
- A third of the country was plunged into Tier 4 yesterday – effectively another lockdown – cancelling Christmas for thousands of families
- MPs demanded a vote be held as soon as possible
- More than £33 billion was wiped off the FTSE 100 within minutes of opening over the chaos
The border shut down caused frenzied fear over food shortages, with Sainsbury’s and the British Retail Consortium warning fruit and veg could run out after Christmas.
Though, the French Transport Secretary Jean-Baptises Djebbari said the 48-hour shutdown could be eased within hours.
But French President Emmanuel Macron said this could require lorry drivers to hand over a negative Covid PCR tests – which would mean the UK would need to very quickly ramp up mass testing infrastructure in Kent.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock caused further dismay yesterday, after he suggested Tier 4 rules could stay in place for months – until the vaccination is rolled out to the most vulnerable people.
It has fuelled fears, Tier 4 could be extended to other parts of the UK, as frantic Londoners tried to escape the capital ahead of the new lockdown.
