By Christmas cannot go ahead as planned, PM says
Following the Prime Ministers news conference at 4pm with England’s chief medical officer Chris Whitty and the chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance, it has been announced that Christmas cannot go ahead as previously planned.
Mr Johnson stated:
“As Prime Minister, it is my duty to take difficult decisions to do what is right to protect the people of this country”.
“There is no alternative open to me”.
He went on to say:
“It is with a very heavy heart that i must tell you that we cannot continue with Christmas as planned”.
As previously reported, those living in tier 4 areas should not mix with anyone outside of their own household during the Christmas period, however, support bubbles will remain in place.
Across the rest of the UK, the 5 day relaxation period from the 23rd – 27th of December has been scrapped following pressure from health advisors and new figures stemming from the identification of the new variant of Covid-19.
The relaxation will now only be allowed on the 25th of December, excluding tier 4 areas.
The PM made it very clear that this includes no hopes of a relaxation on New Years Eve:
“People must not break the rules at New Year, it is very important to emphasise that”.
Mr Johnson expressed he knows how much emotion the public put into this time of year and how important it is for families to be together and grandparents to see their grandchildren after an already challenging year.
He admitted:
“I know how disappointing this will be”.
However, Mr Johnson reiterated the fact that he will be guided by the science and stated:
“When the science changes we must change our response”.
Later adding:
“When the virus changes it’s method of attack, we must change our method of defence”.
