Government to announce which tier areas of England are in this morning

26 November 2020, 07:57 | Updated: 26 November 2020, 08:09

By Alice Dear

@According2Al

Health Secretary Matt Hancock will be providing the highly-anticipated tier information at the House of Commons.

Earlier this week, Boris Johnson announced that England will be returning to a three-tier system when lockdown ends on December 2.

Areas across the country will be divided into tier 1, 2 or 3 depending on the severity of the virus in each area.

Today, Health Secretary Matt Hancock will reveal in the House of Commons the areas across England going into each tier.

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Mr Hancock is expected to address the House of Commons today at around 11:30am with the information.

By the end of the day, England will know which tier they fall into and therefore which rules to follow.

Boris Johnson will then be addressing the nation in a press conference from Downing Street at 5pm.

Earlier this week, it was predicted areas such as Hull, East Lindsey, Hartlepool, Dudley, Stoke-on-Trent, Kirklees and Thanet may enter into tier 3 due to their high COVID cases.

Data from Public Health England – collected for the seven days to November 16 – showed the places in England with the highest cases per 100,000, and therefore at risk of entering the strictest rules.

Oadby and Wigston, Oldham, Bradford and Swale were also included in the list.

Where each area ends up in the tier system will be down to several factors, the PM said earlier this week.

These are: case detection rates in all age groups, cases detection rate in the over 60s, the rate infections are rising or falling, the positivity rate and the pressure on the NHS.

Tier 3 may see the toughest restrictions, but non-essential shops and gyms are set to reopen in all areas after December 2, no matter what tier they're in.

People put into tier 3 will not be allowed to mix with other households indoors or in private gardens, but will be allowed to meet up to six people in public spaces where social distancing is practiced.

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