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Reuters
The government is likely to tighten coronavirus restrictions in parts of England on Monday, including the possibility of closing pubs and restaurants, the BBC understands.
The government is expected to introduce three tiers for local closures, as the BBC reported last week.
But ministers are now discussing how severe the upper tier should be.
The Treasury is considering providing financial support to the hotel industry in the worst affected areas.
BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg says this support could also spread across the country if there were widespread closures.
The decision would follow new restrictions to be implemented in Scotland from Friday, including limiting the opening hours of pubs and the sale of alcohol indoors.
But no final decision has been made on the scope of potential closures in England or the time frame.
The number of cases in the UK increased by 14,162 on Wednesday.
It is a complicated equation. The Health Department is concerned about the spread of the disease, as well as other patients missing other treatments due to the focus on Covid.
The number 11 fears the impact on the economy, which has already had a profound impact.
And No. 10’s job is to worry about everything and then come to a conclusion.
But Boris Johnson also knows that his own MPs and opposition parties are increasingly skeptical as the day passes about what the government is proposing.
It is clear that closing pubs and restaurants is a possibility: the “circuit breaker” that we have talked about here many times.
But there are still many issues to be resolved.
Read more about Laura here.
The changes would come as areas across the country are seeing their level of positive Covid cases rise.
A rebound in Nottingham made it the area with the fourth highest infection rate in England, at 496.8 per 100,000 inhabitants.
Local authorities across Nottinghamshire County have asked residents to avoid mixing with other households, but no official restrictions have yet been put in place.
Three levels
The government confirmed last month that it was considering introducing a new three-tier system for local closings, as a way to simplify the rules.
However, the BBC learned last week that the plan had obtained final approval from government officials and politicians and was due to be implemented in mid-October.
The memorandum seen by the BBC shows plans for additional money for local authorities placed at levels two or three.
Local authorities would receive £ 1 per inhabitant if they were placed at level two and £ 2 per inhabitant for level three.
