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The government will confirm its closure plans for Christmas in the next two weeks, a Conservative cabinet minister said.
Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said special rules will be put in place “as we approach December 2” to coincide with the end of England’s blockade.
It comes after scientific experts sent advice to the government on how the three-tier lockdown rules could be briefly relaxed around Dec. 25.
And the four nations of the United Kingdom have been in talks to ensure that any approach is consistent in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Reports suggest that people from several households, perhaps three, will be able to meet for three to five days under one roof.
(Image: WILL OLIVER / EPA-EFE / REX / Shutterstock)
But that could mean a stricter month of lockdown in return, as SAGE believes that each day of looser rules could require five days of stricter rules.
Speculation has run wild after the plans were leaked to the media.
When asked when people would know what they could do at Christmas, Wallace said, “People will be able to know that around December 2. I can’t tell you now.”
He said there is a “time lag” between the closure and the drop in cases, so it would be “very likely that we are wrong” if the government announced Christmas plans now.
“Over the next few days, the government will establish those details,” Wallace told Sky News.
(Image: Getty (stock image))
“As we get closer to December 2, we will know more about the impact of this blockade.
“Our goals are all the same. We would like to see our families at Christmas, we would like to mingle with each other as much as possible, but we must also remember that this is an incredibly contagious and unpleasant disease. I’m afraid there are a lot of people still dying from Covid. “
When asked again how many friends or family people could have around the Christmas table, Mr. Wallace said, “We can tell you that when we get to December 2nd.
“When we know at this stage how many people in the country are affected, what is the space in our hospitals, how the deployment of vaccines is going to be developed.
“We will know with much more certainty around December 2 than if you ask me today.”
Currently, England’s national lockdown will end on December 2 and will be replaced by a system of local lockdown “tiers.”
The levels themselves are likely to be more difficult than those applied in October after doctors warned that levels 1 and 2 don’t always work.
Cabinet Minister Robert Jenrick also suggested that Level 3 could have more “baseline” rules that apply to all areas that enter it.
Previously, rules like the 9pm limit for alcohol sales and nail bar closing were optional, and only applied to some areas on Level 3.
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