ON TUESDAY night, the Prime Minister addressed the nation, announcing tighter Covid-19 restrictions across the country.
Under new rules, people must now work from home, but health, education, construction and essential public service staff are encouraged to keep going to work.
Starting today, all customers in hospitality venues such as pubs, restaurants, bars and cafés must wear a face covering, except while eating or drinking.
Hospitality staff, shop workers and taxi passengers must also wear face-coverings. And all hospitality venues must now close by 10pm every night.
Rules on weddings have changed, with the 30 person limit halved to 15. Although funerals remain at 30.
Indoor sports involving more than six people have also been banned — this includes five-a-side football.
New laws will mean hospitality and retail premises are legally obligated to ensure customers comply with the rules.
And fines for breaching the rule of six limit on gatherings have doubled from £100 to £200. This can also be dished out to anyone failing to wear a face mask.
Speaking at the House of Commons on Tuesday lunchtime, Boris Johnson said he expected the new rules to be in place for six months, which means that family Christmas celebrations will be limited to six people.
Addressing the nation, at 8pm on Tuesday, Johnson said “When the sickness took hold in this country in March, we pulled together in a spirit of national sacrifice and community.
“We followed the guidance to the letter. We stayed at home, protected the NHS, and saved thousands of lives.
“And for months with those disciplines of social distancing we have kept that virus at bay.
“But we have to acknowledge this this is a great and freedom-loving country; and while the vast majority have complied with the rules there have been too many breaches – too many opportunities for our invisible enemy to slip through undetected.
“The virus has started to spread again in an exponential way. Infections are up, hospital admissions are climbing.”
He added: “The tragic reality of having covid is that your mild cough can be someone else’s death knell.”
He added that it was not realistic to “lock up the elderly and vulnerable” for the rest of the population to continue as normal.
“If we are forced into a new national lockdown, it would mean renewed loneliness and it would threaten once again the education of our children,” the Prime Minister added.
