Coronavirus announcement: Which new rules will be added today?

Boris Johnson will announce a raft of new coronavirus restrictions at 8pm on Tuesday evening, following grave warnings from his scientific advisers that the UK could see up to 50,000 new infections per day if the spread of Covid-19 is not brought under control soon.

The prime minister has repeatedly said he wants to avoid putting the country under a second national lockdown, telling MPs last week that a full-scale lockdown like the one imposed in March would be “disastrous” for the economy.

But the UK is facing an “inevitable” second wave of coronavirus, with new figures showing infections could be doubling every week. The UK’s Covid-19 alert level has been moved to 4, which means transmission is “high or rising exponentially”.

What restrictions will be updated?

Last week, the government imposed its “rule of six” restriction, which bars gatherings of more than six people from meeting indoors or outdoors.

Restrictions on gatherings will remain in place, and will also apply to weddings. Mr Johnson will announce that the number of people permitted to attend weddings will be reduced from 30 to 15.

On Monday night, a curfew was announced for pubs, bars and restaurants in England, which will have to close by 10pm every night from Thursday to minimise the opportunities for people to breach social distancing rules.

Cabinet minister Michael Gove told BBC Breakfast there was evidence that an earlier closing time for venues had a “beneficial effect” on the spread of the virus in areas where the restriction already applies, such as Bolton.

The hospitality sector will now be restricted by law to table service only.

What other restrictions will be announced?

Mr Johnson will reverse the government’s push for workers to return to the office, and will instead urge people to work from home if they are able to this evening.

This comes just weeks after office employees were encouraged to go back to the office and populate city centres again amid fears these areas were turning into “ghost towns” and commuter-reliant on office workers were struggling.

Mr Johnson will announce further delays to trials of spectators returning to professional sporting events, which were due to begin on 1 October. 

Penalties for breaking the rules will also be increased, and the prime minister confirmed during a speech in Parliament on Tuesday afternoon that the new restrictions will remain in place for six months.

What about face coverings?

Face coverings are currently mandatory in shops, supermarkets and on public transport, but Mr Johnson will also announce further rules to make them compulsory in taxis.

Ride-hailing companies such as Uber and Bolt already require passengers to wear face masks while inside drivers’ vehicles.