Christmas bubbles cut to just one day

London plans scrapped completely amid fears over new variant of virus

CHRISTMAS bubbles have been cut to just one day in Greater Manchester – with residents in London and the South East told they can’t mix with other households at all.

Those living in the capital and the South East of England will be plunged into newly created Tier 4 restrictions as of today.

They will not be allowed to form bubbles over the Christmas period as originally promised by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, or mix indoors outside of their own households.

Tier 4 residents must not leave their area and will be subject to a legal ‘stay at home’ order like the one in place during the November lockdown.

Originally, Mr Johnson had promised to ease restrictions over the festive period to allow people to mix with more family and friends – and residents of Tier 3 areas such as Greater Manchester will still be allowed to do this.

But the restrictions will only be eased for just 24 hours, on Christmas Day itself, rather than over a five-day period from Wednesday as planned.

Residents across the country are also being warned to “stay local” and avoid travelling outside their areas.

Mr Johnson said earlier in the week it would have been ‘inhumane’ to ‘cancel Christmas’, something he accused Leader of the Opposition Keir Starmer of wanting to do.

In a Downing Street press conference yesterday, he said: “I know how much emotion people invest in this time of year, and how important it is, for instance, for grandparents to see their grandchildren, for families to be together.

“So I know how disappointing this will be. But we have said throughout this pandemic that we must and we will be guided by the science.

“When the science changes, we must change our response.”

The U-turn comes as scientists warn of a new variant of coronavirus that can spread more rapidly.

Professor Chris Whitty, chief medical officer for England, said the World Health Organisation has been informed of the rapid spread of the new variant.

“There is no current evidence to suggest the new strain causes a higher mortality rate or that it affects vaccines and treatments, although urgent work is under way to confirm this,” he said in a statement.

“Given this latest development, it is now more vital than ever that the public continue to take action in their area to reduce transmission.”