When tier restrictions will be reviewed next and what criteria will be used as Hartlepool is kept in Tier 3

The majority of the north of England is still under the stricter Tier 3 restrictions whereby pubs and restaurants must stay closed but shops can remain open.

Matt Hancock said on Thursday, December 17 that the “vast majority” of places in Tier 3 restrictions will not be changed.

The Health Secretary told the commons on December 17: “It’s so vital that everyone sticks at it and does the right thing, especially over this Christmas period.

“It’s important to remember that this can be a silent disease. One in three people who have the disease has no symptoms but can still pass it on.

“Everyone, therefore, has a personal responsibility to play their part in keeping this pandemic under control.”

How long will the tier system last?MPs voted earlier in the month to allow the tier system introduced after the second national lockdown to remain in place until at least January 27.

When will the tiers be reviewed?After the first announcement the Government said it would review the Tier system in two weeks, and then ‘regularly’ after that.

An emergency review took place on the weekend of December 12 and 13 which saw Essex and London moved from Tier 2 to Tier 3.

It is now being reported that the next national review will take place in the New Year.

How are the tiers decided?

Tier levels are being decided by central government based on five factors, which include:

Infection rate overall

Infection rate among the over 60s

Rate at which cases are rising or falling

NHS pressure in the local area

Positive test rate (as a percentage of all tests carried out)

Prime Minister Boris Johnson previously explained: “The criteria we use to decide who went into which tier would be case detection rates in all groups, case detection rates in the over-60s, the rate at which cases are rising or falling, positivity rates and pressure on the NHS.

“So those are some of the criteria that we will use.”

The total number of Covid-19 patients in hospitals across the UK is currently similar to during the first peak, when there were more people in intensive care, this is down higher compared to the end of November.

In the North East and Yorkshire, the latest R rate – which shows how quickly coronavirus is spreading – is estimated to be between 0.7-0.9, which is lower than the England-wide estimate.

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