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Rishi Sunak has said that the new lockdown restrictions in England will expire on December 2 “as a matter of law.”
The chancellor stressed that these rules have a time limit, and told the BBC that “the expectation and firm hope of the government is that the measures implemented will be sufficient to do the work we need.”
At the end of the four week period, Mr Sunak added that England is expected to be able to return to a tiered system.
The new lockdown is scheduled to begin on Thursday, and the prime minister will face MPs today before voting on the measures on Wednesday.
The vote is expected based on Labor votes, and many Conservative MPs are unhappy with the decision.
Questions about whether the lockdown will extend beyond four weeks arose after the cabinet minister Michael Gove told Sky News on Sunday that could happen “if necessary.”
The licensing scheme has been expanded to cover people who are unable to work during the shutdown due to restrictions.
On Monday, Sunak said the government’s 40% support for the self-employed “will increase” but that those grants cover a much longer period than the leave plan.
In Wales, Prime Minister Mark Drakeford has denied that the current “firewall” will continue beyond two weeks.
He told Sky News’s Kay Burley at breakfast: “We will not expand it, we will get out of the firewall on November 9.”
Scotland enters a new five-tier system today, with Nicola Sturgeon warning that she would not hesitate to increase the level of protection locally or nationally as needed.
