England to go into lockdown from midnight tonight after MPs approve new restrictions

England is to go into a four-week lockdown from midnight tonight, after MPs approved Boris Johnson’s plan for tougher coronavirus restrictions by an overwhelming 516 votes to 38.

The vote came after a stormy debate in which a succession of Conservative backbenchers voiced opposition to the new restrictions, which will force the closure of pubs, restaurants and non-essential shops and require people to stay home as much as possible.

A total of 34 Tory MPs rebelled – 32 voting against the government and two acting as tellers – alongside DUP MPs and an Independent. A further 18 Tory MPs did not vote, though some may have been given permission to be absent.

Among the rebels were former party leader Iain Duncan Smith and ex-chief whip Mark Harper, while Mr Johnson’s predecessor as prime minister Theresa May abstained, after a critical speech accusing the government of cherry-picking statistics to support its case.

The Liberal Democrats and Labour supported the government, with the SNP sitting out the vote. The result means the prime minister was able to pass the lockdown without relying on opposition MPs.

Following the vote, rebel teller Steve Baker told Sky News that he had “huge misgivings” about a strategy which would impose “absolutely enormous costs” on the country in the hope of suppressing the virus until vaccines and treatments become available.

“This strategy relies on what is a big bet that science delivers on a vaccine, on testing on treatments and that the logistics work too,” said Mr Baker, who said that Britain should instead be “learning to live with this virus”.

The former minister was one of a large number of potential rebels who spoke with the prime minister in 10 Downing Street over the past few days as Mr Johnson fought to keep his own party onside.

Former prime minister Theresa May was the most prominent critic to lambast the government from the backbenches, accusing her successor of using figures that were "chosen to support the policy rather than the policy being based on the figures".

Mr Johnson walked out of the Commons chamber as his predecessor began to speak, to the audible disapproval of a number of MPs who regarded it as a snub.

The former PM – one of those who abstained in the final vote – was one of several Tory MPs to raise concern about the ban on services in places worship, which will remain open only for private prayer and ceremonies such as funerals.

"The government today making it illegal to conduct an act of public worship for the best of intentions, sets a precedent that could be misused for a government in the future with the worst of intentions," Ms May warned.

Other Tory rebels included Esther McVey, John Redwood and David Jones, as well as the chair and vice-chair of the influential backbench 1922 Committee Sir Graham Brady and Sir Charles Walker.

Also voting against the government were Tory MPs Adam Afriyie, Peter Bone, Steve Brine, Christopher Chope, Philip Davies, Jonathan Djanogly, Jackie Doyle-Price, Richard Drax, Marcus Fysh, Chris Green, James Grundy, Gordon Henderson, Tim Loughton, Craig Mackinlay, Stephen McPartland, Huw Merriman, Anne Marie Morris, Sir Mike Penning, Andrew Rosindell, Henry Smith, Sir Desmond Swayne, Robert Syms, Derek Thomas, Craig Whittaker and William Wragg.

Speaking in the parliamentary debate ahead of the vote, Mr Johnson told his Tory critics that "the facts don't support" their opposition to the latest round of measures.

In his opening remarks, the prime minister added: "I'm sorry to say that the number of Covid patients in some hospitals is already higher than at the peak of the first wave. Even in the southwest, which has so far had lower case rates than most of the rest of the country, hospital admissions are over half way to their first wave peak.

"Sage's latest analysis published on Friday suggests that the R remains above one in every part of England. Every day that R is above one is another day that the number of cases will rise, locking in more hospital admissions and more fatalities, pushing the NHS ever closer to the moment when it cannot cope."

He added: "I know there are some members who are hearing from their local hospitals that the pressure is not that great yet, but the whole point about a national health service is that when hospitals in one part of the country are overrun, sick patients are returned to another, until the whole system falls over.

"This existential threat to the NHS comes not from focusing too much on coronavirus, but from not focusing enough. If we fail to get coronavirus under control it is the sheer weight of demand which would deprive other patients of the care they need."

Labour leader Keir Starmer had harsh words for the prime minister, despite ordering his MPs to support the government in the vote. Rounding on the government’s exit strategy for the lockdown, Sir Keir said it  would be “madness” for England to leave lockdown on 2 December if coronavirus rates are still rising.

“We have got to look the public in the eye,” Sir Keir told the prime minister at PMQs ahead of the debate. “If the infection rate is still going up on 2 December, it is madness to come back to the tier system. We know the one thing the tier system can't cope with is an R rate above one.” 

Britain is the latest in a string of countries across Europe set to enter a second lockdown amid rising cases and deaths. Labour has been calling for a short two-week lockdown, which it says should have been imposed earlier for maximum effectiveness.

On Tuesday the UK's death toll rose by 397 people, bringing the total to over 47,000 since the start of the crisis. The number is the highest since 422 died on 27 May.