London placed under toughest coronavirus restrictions

Under Tier 3 restrictions, the toughest level in England’s three-tier system, people can’t socialise indoors and bars, pubs and restaurants must close except for takeaway.

In November, London was among areas with the lowest regional infection rates in England. But some areas in and around London have now become virus hotspots.

Hancock told lawmakers that officials have identified “a new variant of coronavirus which may be associated with the faster spread in the south of England.”

“We’ve currently identified over 1000 cases with this variant predominantly in the south of England although cases have been identified in nearly 60 different local authority areas,” he said. “And numbers are increasing rapidly.”

He didn’t provide details about the virus variant, but said there was nothing to suggest it was more likely to cause serious disease, or that it wouldn’t respond to a vaccine. Hancock said the government has notified the World Health Organisation about the new variant.

Local officials in some boroughs of the capital have already advised some schools to close and move to online learning as coronavirus cases spike. On Sunday, Greenwich officials said the borough was experiencing a period of “exponential growth” in cases, with infection rates now at their highest since March.

Mayor Sadiq Kahn has suggested that the government asks all secondary schools and colleges in London to shut early before Christmas because of outbreaks among those ranging in age from 10 to 19.