More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
The government is expected to confirm tomorrow that Kent will remain in Tier 3 under the toughest coronavirus restrictions.
Results of a review of the tiers in place across the country are due to be announced tomorrow, with the entire county due to remain at the very highest Covid-19 alert level.
Earlier this evening Prime Minister Boris Johnson was clear that the situation in Kent remains of great concern.
He told a Downing Street press conference the county is "still seeing rising infections" despite the second national lockdown and its place in the toughest tier of restrictions.
Despite calls for a more localised approach, there is no signal that the county could be divided up into smaller areas for tiering purposes.
Rates of infection remain stubbornly high right across the county, with no areas likely to be considered safe for a loosening of restrictions.
Health secretary Matt Hancock is due to announce the results of a nationwide review of tiers tomorrow.
The maintenance of the status quo for Kent would come as no surprise. Case numbers continue to rise and six areas of Kent are in the top 10 for the worst infection rates in the country.
The latest statistics show that each of the county's districts and boroughs now have above average rates and that there were nearly 700 people in Kent's hospitals with Covid.
It means the rules surrounding many aspects of life will stay the same, with pubs and restaurants shut, other than for takeaways, and limits on who you can meet and where.
The rule of six applies to meet-ups in some outdoor public places but gatherings indoors are banned, unless they are people you live with or who are in your 'bubble'.
People are encouraged to continue to work from home, where they can, and schools and nurseries remain open – although in Kent thousands of children are not in classrooms due to Covid.
What about Christmas?
Controversially, the restrictions will be eased for five days over Christmas, from December 23 to December 27.
The prevalence of the virus led to widespread calls for a rethink of the policy to relax the rules, with health professionals and scientists saying the measures will see cases and deaths soar in the new year.
Results of a KentOnline poll revealed that readers agreed. More than 1,000 people took part and 71% of them thought the government should change its mind.
However, it was announced earlier today that the guidelines would remain the same.
Tory MPs were among those issuing stark warnings about the effect of relaxing the restrictions.
North Thanet's Sir Roger Gale said he thought it was very dangerous.
"The government's in a very difficult position because if you try to impose a condition that people simply will not keep then - short of sending in the police, which you can't do under these circumstances - then people won't comply.
"The situation is developing daily and, not entirely surprisingly, the medical advice suggests that we are setting up problems for the new year.
"The best we can hope for is the majority of people – it won't be all of them because some are plain stupid – will behave responsibly and sensibly and not cluster to any great extent, while making sure granny can see her grandchildren.
"The mental effect of not allowing people to do something at Christmas will also be devastating."
Canterbury’s Labour MP, Rosie Duffield, also supported the calls for the Christmas rules to be re-evaluated.
“A lot of people I know are choosing not to mix with family and are writing Christmas off," she said.
“People have got to weigh up, is it worth it? When I talk to my friends on Zoom, we each wonder is it worth it?
“For some, this could be the last Christmas they see someone, but they could be asymptomatic. The whole thing is horrible.”
