I am extremely aware of the sadness and frustration many people will be feeling following the Prime Minister’s statement on Saturday which moved Essex into the new Tier 4 level of restrictions which came as many people were finalising their Christmas preparations and shopping. I am so sorry for everyone whose plans have been ruined at such short notice.
This decision was taken because new evidence came to light about the new variant strain of the virus which has taken hold in the South East. On Friday, Nervtag Analysis revealed that the new strain of the virus is 70 per cent more transmissible and could increase the R by 0.4. Therefore, we had to act swiftly in order to prevent it spreading to the rest of the country and overwhelming the NHS. Faced with this new data the Prime Minister felt he had no choice but to increase restrictions in areas such as ours and to place further limits on how Christmas can be celebrated everywhere.
Full details of what you can and cannot do under Tier 4 restrictions can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tier-4-stay-at-home
This is rotten news to bring at the end of what has been a pretty miserable year for individuals, families and businesses. The good news is that so far there is no evidence that this variant strain is more deadly or more resistant to the vaccines that have been developed. There is hope for 2021 but for now I am afraid we must hunker down to protect each other and our health service. I hope you all find a way to have a happy Christmas despite everything.