BrexitUK lockdown update: What are the new lockdown rules in England?

Boris Johnson says the country must act to prevent a "medical and moral disaster '' for the NHS.

Boris Johnson has announced that England will enter a four-week full lockdown as of Thursday 5 November to help curb the accelerating spread of coronavirus.

The prime minister announced the measures during a press conference at Downing Street on Saturday 31 October, alongside chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance and chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty.

The measures will be imposed across England and will replace the current and only recently introduced three-tier ‘traffic light’ system.

Mr Johnson had previously said that a short, sharp lockdown or “circuit breaker” as recommended by scientific advisers and such as the kind imposed in Wales, would not be necessary. Instead, three tiers of local measures were introduced nationwide.

The U-turn to a second national lockdown comes after scientific forecasting that suggests the winter death toll could surpass the 85,000 mark that had been predicted by government modelling in a worst-case scenario.  

Mr Johnson said, “our hope was that by strong local action, strong local leadership, we could get the rates of infection down where the disease was surging”, but that “the virus has been spreading even faster than the reasonable worst-case scenario of our scientific advisers”.  

Mr Whitty said that “the prevalence of this disease has been going up extremely rapidly over the last few weeks, having been very flat over spring and summer”, with daily cases of coronavirus averaging around 50,000.  

The new measures will enforce the closure of much of the hospitality industry, including pubs and restaurants, however takeaways and deliveries will be permitted.

Essential shops, such as supermarkets, and educational settings, including nurseries, schools and universities, will remain open.  Outdoor exercise will be allowed, while foreign travel will be banned.

The measures will remain in place until 2 December.

Here’s everything we know so far about what people can and cannot do in light of the new guidance. 

Visiting friends and family

The new rules will mean there will be no mixing of people inside homes anywhere in the country, except for in cases where childcare and other forms of support are necessary.

However, under the new lockdown, unlike the first, You can exercise or visit outdoor public places with the people you live with, your support bubble, or 1 person from another household.

Outdoor public places include, parks, beaches, countryside, public gardens, allotments and playgrounds. You cannot meet in a private garden.

Single-adult households will still be permitted to form or maintain a support bubble with another household.  

If you are clinically vulnerable or over the age of 60, the prime minister said you must minimise contact with other people as much as possible.  

Schools and universities

There will be another key difference between this and the first national lockdown: schools, colleges and universities will be allowed to stay open. 

During his speech, Mr Johnson said: “My priority, our priority, remains keeping people in education - so childcare, early years settings, schools, colleges and universities will all remain open.

“We cannot let this virus damage our children's futures even more than it has already. I urge parents to continue taking their children to school and I am extremely grateful to teachers across the country for their dedication in enabling schools to remain open.”

In March, only vulnerable pupils and children of key workers were permitted to attend school in person, with A-levels and GCSE exams being cancelled nationwide.

Pubs and restaurants

Just like the first national lockdown which started in March, pubs, bars and restaurants will be forced to close completely.

However, establishments will be permitted to open to offer takeaway food. Takeaway of alcohol will not be allowed.

Non-essential shops

All non-essential retail will be forced to close, including clothing and electronics stores, vehicle showrooms, travel agents and betting shops.