National lockdown "sad" but "expected" by Essex leaders
The whole of England has entered another lockdown to help fight the new variant of Covid-19
The Prime Minister addressed the nation yesterday evening, 4th January, announcing England will enter lockdown measures in a bid to combat for the more transmissible variant of coronavirus.
Contrary to Boris Johnson's announcement at the weekend, schools have been ordered to close and turn to remote learning, and summer exams won't go ahead as planned.
Under the new lockdown rules, people can only leave for their for essential reasons, which include:
- Exercise with your household/support bubble or one other person.
- Work or voluntarily/charitable services if they cannot be done from home.
- Shopping for essentials for yourself or a vulnerable person.
- Meeting your support bubble or childcare bubble where necessary, if you are legally allowed to form one.
- Seek medical assistance or to avoid injury, illness or risk of harm.
- Attend education or childcare for those eligible.
The decision to place England in lockdown wasn't a surprise for leaders in Essex, who recently declared a major incident due to rising cases of Covid-19 in the area.
Councillor Mark Cory, Leader of Colchester Borough Council, said: "It is clear that the new variant of the virus is out of control and the Government is, once again, behind the curve.
"It's sad that we're in this position once again and in Essex in particular we've declared a major incident as our NHS is becoming overwhelmed.
"In Colchester, we have been fortunate and have acted well as a community but Covid is spreading rapidly here as well.
"The full lockdown is needed."
Mr Cory, who lobbied to keep schools across Colchester closed in the New Year, said he couldn't believe how quickly the advice one schools changed, but supported them remaining shut.
Essex Chambers of Commerce said businesses in the county had done "everything they need to" to make their environment safe but the new measures are not a surprise.
Director of Policy at the Chambers, David Burch, thinks it's now a case of looking ahead to the future.
He said: "The roll out of the vaccinations is a very welcome move, it's something that businesses will support. The Prime Minister said that's proceeding well and we look forward to see how it's being rolled out across Essex.
"We think that will help to ensure we can get to some sort of normality once again which is what all of us, whether we are a business or member of the general public, have been hoping for ever since it started.
"Our message is to continue to follow the Government guidance to make sure you keep yourself and other people safe, and we look forward to getting back to as normal state as we can."