Dear Reader

HELLO and welcome to Wednesday’s edition of The News — and corononavirus once again dominates the national and local headlines. Given the grim warnings from the government’s chief scientific and medical officers on Monday, and the raising of the national covid alert level from three to four, it was hardly surprising that the prime minister unveiled new restrictions and spoke to the nation last night. ‘We’ve turned a perilous turning point,’ said Boris Johnson as he announced new measures to limit the spread of coronavirus which could last up to six months. These include increased fines for failing to observe rules on face coverings, and a new requirement for people to work from home wherever possible. The rule of six will still apply in England, but pubs and restaurants must close at 10pm and sport is affected. Despite a number of tragic deaths during lockdown the truth is that the Portsmouth area has not been as badly affected as other parts of the country, as the graph on our front page illustrates. We hope that by pulling together and sticking to the rules, we can keep it that way. Stay safe.

Mark Waldron Editor