Iain Dale 7pm - 10pm
Coronavirus LIVE: PM warns reckless Christmas could trigger New Year lockdown
26 November 2020, 11:42 | Updated: 26 November 2020, 18:56
WATCH LIVE: Coronavirus press conference (26 November 2020)
Boris Johnson has warned that "taking our foot off the throat of the beast" of coronavirus at Christmas could trigger a New Year lockdown.
At a Downing Street press conference, the Prime Minister asked the public to avoid "casting aside our hard-won gains" by creating a third wave of the virus across the country.
"If we ease off now, we risk losing control of this virus all over again, casting aside our hard-won gains and forcing us back to a New Year national lockdown with all the damage that would mean," said.
If follows an explanation of the new Tier system by Matt Hancock earlier today, announcing that London and Liverpool will enter Tier 2 while Birmingham and Manchester will fall under Tier 3.
Under the new Tiers, only three areas - Cornwall, the Isle of Wight and the Scilly Isles - face Tier 1 restrictions.
The new measures have been met with fury from many MPs, who argue that it is simply "lockdown under another name".
Read more: Lockdown postcode checker
Read more: Everything you need to know about the new Covid tier system
Read more: England's post-lockdown tiers to be revealed - but hardly anywhere will be in Tier 1
Follow the Prime Minister's Press conference LIVE below.
Happening Now