Coronavirus daily headlines as ministers continue to hatch plans for Christmas and further vaccine progress is announced

coronavirus restrictions from next Wednesday, December 2.Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced which areas would be placed in which tiers on Thursday.He said the tiers will be reviewed in a fortnight and kept "regularly under review after that".Mr Hancock also said that the measures are necessary given the "scale of the threat" faced by the UK.Lancashire was placed into Tier 3 after national and local government wrangling when the system was first introduced in October.The new system, however, has been described as "tougher".These are the rules people in Lancashire, Blackpool and Blackburn with Darwen will have to follow from December 2.This is for areas with a very high or very rapidly rising level of infections, where tighter

Good Morning Britain star Dr Hilary has revealed how he is approaching the Christmas restrictions enforced by the government this year.Earlier this week, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that up to three households will be allowed to form an exclusive Christmas bubble from Wednesday 23 December to Sunday 27 December.MORE: Who is Dr Hilary's wife and how long have they been married?Naturally, this has left many families facing the tough decision of which two other households to mix with. WATCH: Dr Hilary Jones reveals family dilemma this ChristmasDr Hilary, who has five children, revealed that he will not be seeing any of his kids this festive period during an appearance on Thursday's Lorraine.

Bruce Springsteen has led a new campaign to get New Jersey residents to wear a mask across the holiday season, ask the US continues to see rising coronavirus cases.Also involved in the #MaskUpNJ campaign are Jon Bon Jovi and comedian Jon Stewart.Sharing a photo of a billboard with the trio photographed wearing masks, Springsteen tweeted: “Teamed up with some fellow New Jerseyans to encourage everyone this holiday season to wear a friggin’ mask. Let’s all come together and #MaskUpNJ so we can get back to what we do best – singing along and dancing together.”Teamed up with some fellow New Jerseyans to encourage everyone this holiday season to wear a friggin’ mask.

infections, with 1,125 people currently in hospital and 90 being treated in intensive care for Covid-19. It comes as the four UK nations agreed a plan for the festive period.Christmas gatherings will be set at eight people over 12 years old in Scotland - and households should stay two metres apart indoors, according to new official guidance.

Get the stories that interest you straight to your inbox every day with our personalised newsletterIrvine Judo Club are asking local businesses and organisations to loosen their belts for a special Christmas appeal.Coaches Gordon and William Brawley and volunteers are desperate to ensure vulnerable elderly residents in Irvine have a present to open on December 25.They are appealing for donations of toiletries and items including slippers and dressing gowns to send to nursing homes in the town and the geriatric ward at Woodlands View hospital.The duo told the Irvine Herald of their plans this week after we visited the club to see how they are coping with life after lockdown.William said: “It’s been a really difficult year for everyone with

Boris Johnson unveiled the government’s winter plan on Monday, November 23, which involved going into a tiered system of restrictions when the national lockdown ends on December 2. The tiered system will be similar to the one from October, but will be stricter, and more areas have been placed in Tiers One and Tier Two.Ministers were expected to announce the full list of tiers for every part of England today, November 26.Health Secretary Matt Hancock has listed the areas, but surprisingly only three areas will be in the lowest Tier One.There are only three areas which will be in Tier One, or the medium alert level.They are Cornwall, The Isle of Wight and the Isles of Scilly.

Phillip Schofield said a number of people are feeling at "breaking point" as the coronavirus pandemic continues – and he's one of them. Joined by his co-host Holly Willoughby on today's This Morning, Phillip admitted he'd had "enough" of the hardships of the year, with restrictions and isolation galore.

Olly Murs has revealed that he kick-started his weight loss journey in a bid to match up to his girlfriend’s bodybuilding brothers.

London will be placed into Tier 2 coronavirus restrictions from next week, it has been annouced.The capital will be considered "High alert" when the national lockdown comes to an end next Wednesday, December 2.According to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics, London's coronavirus rates "now also appear to be decreasing".These are the rules people must follow in London:Across all tiers, everyone:In Tier 2:hospitality businesses selling food or drink for consumption on their premises are required to:

Following the success of his COVID-19 themed single ‘Thank You, Baked Potato’ earlier this year, Matt Lucas has returned with a festive sequel, ‘Merry Christmas, Baked Potato’.The version of the song released in April raised money for the FeedNHS campaign to provide keyworkers with hot meals while battling the pandemic. This time around, Lucas is raising funds for FareShare, which redistributes surplus food to frontline charities and community groups, an organisation that has come to wider attention this year thanks to its collaborations with footballer Marcus Rashford.“Santa Baked Potato’s on his way”, says Lucas.

This Morning viewers were perplexed when they turned on their TVs on Thursday, only to see Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby apparently holding hands.Welcoming viewers to the show, the pair were seated next to one another at the counter, with their hands rested on the table before them.Through a trick of camera angles, it appeared they were holding hands, as their fingers blended into one another.Due to the coronavirus pandemic, in order to maintain social distancing, ITV has decided to doctor camera angles to make it appear as though the presenters are sitting side-by-side.In reality, the duo were seated a metre apart – but the clever angles could make it appear as though they were touching.Confused by the optical illusion, certain

Get the stories that matter to you sent straight to your inbox with our daily newsletter.Johnstone Town Hall has been chosen to host Scotland’s first mass Covid-19 testing centre for asymptomatic people, the Express understands.The Church Street venue will be used to test up to 12,000 people who are not currently displaying symptoms of the virus.The pilot is currently proposed to launch on Wednesday and last for one week.Those taking part will, it is understood, undergo a lateral flow test which delivers results within 30 minutes.A spokesman for Renfrewshire Council said: “We are working with NHSGGC and Scottish Government to prepare a pilot in Johnstone as part of the expansion of mass testing of those with no coronavirus symptoms.“This is

Germany has extended its partial coronavirus lockdown until at least December 20, meaning cinemas in the European major will not resume operations before that date. It is also possible, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said, that restrictions could continue into January. A re-evaluation is due to take place on December 15.

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Tesco shoppers who still need to get their homes ready for the festive season can get up to half price off artificial Christmas trees and lights.

coronavirus lockdown ends. Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham said he believes the region will be put under the highest level of measures, which will see the closure of all hospitality venues with only takeaway and delivery permitted.The UK also recorded its highest daily death toll since the beginning of May yesterday, adding a further 696 coronavirus-related deaths to the total.A NHS Nightingale hospital in Exeter is due to receive its first patients today, while Germany is preparing to extend its shutdown well into December amid rising case rates.

straight to your inbox every day for freeHere are your Manchester United morning headlines for Thursday, 26 November.Greenwood responds to Ferdinand praise Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood has acknowledged Rio Ferdinand’s praise after the youngster helped the Reds see off Istanbul Basaksehir in the Champions League. Greenwood provided an assist for Daniel James’ injury-time strike after replacing Bruno Fernandes on the hour mark.Greenwood has endured a frustrating start to the season but Ferdinand was buoyed by the 19-year-old’s eye-catching cameo at Old Trafford as United stayed top of Group H.

The number of coronavirus patients to die at Salford Royal Hospital has reached 300.A total of 69 deaths have been reported so far in November - with at least one patient passing away at the hospital as a result of Covid-19 every day this month.A total of 119 patients at Salford Royal have died of the virus during the second wave of the pandemic.However, the second wave - which began after August 19 - has now appeared to pass its peak and was not as high as the peak in the first wave in April.The second wave appears to have peaked on November 8, when there were 29 deaths recorded in a period of 7 days.At the height of the first wave in April, there were 35 deaths recorded in a single 7-day period.The infection rate in Salford has been

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefThai producer Soros Sukhum (“By The Time It Gets Dark,” “Concrete Clouds”) was Thursday honored with the FIAPF Award for outstanding achievement in film in the Asia Pacific region. The prize was presented as part of a heavily revamped Asia Pacific Screen Awards ceremony, at Gold Coast in Australia’s Queensland.The Young Cinema Award was won by Indian filmmaker Akshay Indikar for “Chronicle of Space” (“Sthalpuran”), with a special mention going to Australia’s Stephen Maxwell Johnson for “High Ground.”Earlier this year the APSA Awards event’s future had seemed deeply clouded due to twin hits from financial problems and the coronavirus.

The Tories’ cruel pay freeze for teachers and police next year will save less than 1% of the amount spent on coronavirus, analysts have revealed.

IT was a tight squeeze in Barry Island last Christmas as Uncle Bryn cooked up a festive feast for more than 13 people and the Gavin and Stacey clan piled into Gwen’s terrace house. Seven households united for the big day – including Smithy and Pam and Mick Shipman, who travelled over the Welsh border from BiIlericay, Essex.