The health secretary will today outline which, if any, regions in England will change tiers before the relaxation of COVID rules over the festive period. Matt Hancock will also explain plans to extend mass community testing to Tier 2 areas with high rates of coronavirus. Currently, only Tier 3 areas are eligible for the localised
Politics
Boris Johnson has warned “a smaller Christmas is going to be a safer Christmas” as he urged people to see festive bubbles of three households as “maximums” and not “targets to aim for”. The prime minister confirmed that Christmas COVID rules would not be changing in law, but he admitted that the “overall situation” is
Boris Johnson is resisting demands to “cancel Christmas”, claiming it is too late to change plans to allow families to meet up during a five-day relaxation of COVID rules. He will face MPs in the Commons and later address Tory backbenchers and declare his opposition to dropping plans for three households to meet up from
Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove will speak with the devolved nations later this afternoon about next week’s relaxation of coronavirus rules over Christmas, Sky News understands. The call is expected to take place at around 5pm, it is believed. Sky News understands that potential alternative options that could emerge include: Keeping the rules as they
Sadiq Khan has called on the government to rethink its relaxation of coronavirus rules over Christmas. “What I’d say to the government is I’m not sure you’ve got it right, in fact I’m sure you haven’t got it right in relation to the relaxations over Christmas,” the London mayor told Sky News. Live updates on
London will move into the highest level of coronavirus restrictions imminently, Health Secretary Matt Hancock has told MPs from the capital. The move will see thousands of bars, pubs, cafes and restaurants close in the capital, except for takeaway, delivery and click and collect services. Under Tier 3 measures, people must not meet socially indoors,
There has been some progress in one area of the Brexit talks but disagreements remain on other issues, EU negotiator Michel Barnier has reportedly said. A senior EU diplomat, cited by the Reuters news agency, said the bloc’s chief negotiator had told ambassadors there has been “limited” progress on agreeing an enforcement mechanism to ensure
Post-Brexit trade talks between the UK and Brussels will continue into next week after negotiators were told to “go the extra mile”. Prime Minister Boris Johnson and EU Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen released a brief joint statement following what they called a “useful” phone call on Sunday morning. They said they “discussed the
Post-Brexit trade talks between the UK and EU could slip beyond tonight’s deadline, the foreign secretary has suggested. Speaking to Sky News’ Sophy Ridge On Sunday, Dominic Raab said “I can’t close the door” on that possibility but admitted “there is still a long way to go” before an agreement is possible. Prime Minister Boris
As negotiations on a UK-EU trade deal are set to continue overnight, a British government source has said that “as things stand the offer on the table from the EU remains unacceptable”. Both sides now concede that a no-deal outcome is more likely than not when the talks end on Sunday, and Royal Navy gunboats
Armed Royal Navy boats are being prepared to patrol the UK’s fishing waters in an apparent final warning shot to Brussels as negotiations enter the final 48 hours. Four of the 80-metre vessels are on standby to guard British waters from EU fishermen in case no deal is agreed on fishing rights after the Brexit
UK and EU leaders might not yet be able to agree on a trade deal, but one Brexit issue they can agree on is their fondness for cake metaphors. French President Emmanuel Macron became the latest leader to serve a slice of analogy on Friday when asked about the EU’s contingency planning. In the event
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said the UK and EU “remain apart on fundamental issues” ahead of Sunday’s deadline for a Brexit trade deal. Speaking at a Brussels summit of EU leaders, Ms von der Leyen set out continuing differences between EU and UK negotiators on so-called level playing field provisions and
There is a “strong possibility” no post-Brexit trade deal will be struck with the EU, Boris Johnson has warned. The prime minister told British citizens and businesses to “make proper preparations” for the scenario, which would come into effect on 1 January 2021. He added that Brussels’ current offer “isn’t right for the UK” and
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has told Sky News that Sunday will be a “point of finality” for Brexit trade talks if the EU does not “move substantially” in negotiations. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday night shared a three-hour dinner with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in the hope of breaking months of
Boris Johnson is dashing to Brussels for dinner with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, hoping for an early Christmas present: a Brexit deal. With deadlock after months of talks between UK and EU negotiators, the prime minister is aiming for an 11th-hour breakthrough in what could be a make-or-break meeting. Mr Johnson will