Tier 4 – Update on Tiers 1,2,3 and New Xmas Rules

In addition to the creation of Tier 4 (called the Stay at home Tier) the guidance for Tiers 1,2 and 3 has also been updated in regards to travel.

• Tier 1
  
  o Travelling out of a Tier 1 area

   You should stay local and avoid travelling outside of your local area, meaning your village or town, or part of a city, where possible. People should continue to travel for reasons such as work, education, medical attention or caring responsibilities.
   If you live in a Tier 1 area and do need to travel to an area in a higher tier you should follow the rules for that area while you are there.
   Avoid travel to or overnight stays in Tier 3 areas other than where necessary, such as:

  • for work
  • for education
  • to access voluntary, charitable or youth services
  • to visit your support bubble
  • to receive medical treatment
  • for moving house
  • because of caring responsibilities.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tier-1-medium-alert

• Tier 2
  
  o Travelling out of a Tier 2 area

   You should stay local and avoid travelling outside of your local area, meaning your village or town, or part of a city, where possible. People should continue to travel for reasons such as work, education, getting medical attention or fulfilling caring responsibilities.
   If you live in a Tier 2 area, you must continue to follow Tier 2 rules when you travel to a Tier 1 area.
   However, avoid travel to or overnight stays in Tier 3 areas other than where necessary, such as:

  • for work
  • for education
  • to access voluntary, charitable or youth services
  • to visit your support bubble
  • to receive medical treatment
  • for moving home
  • because of caring responsibilities

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tier-2-high-alert

• Tier 3
  
  o Travelling into or out of a Tier 3 alert level area

   Avoid travelling outside your area, including for overnight stays, other than where necessary, such as:

  • for work
  • for education
  • to access voluntary, charitable or youth services
  • because of caring responsibilities
  • for moving home
  • to visit your support bubble
  • for a medical appointment or treatment

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tier-3-very-high-alert

The Tier 4 rules have just been published and are similar to the original lockdown

• Stay at Home

  The starting point for the new Tier 4 is that people are must not leave their home except for where they have a specific purpose, or a ‘reasonable excuse’ – which is restricted to

  o Work and volunteering
  o Essential activities (eg., buying food or medication)
  o Fulfilling legal obligations
  o Education and childcare
  o Communal worship and life events
  o Exercise
  o Medical reasons, harm and compassionate visits

• Travel

  There seems to be an anomaly in the travel guidance in that people in Tier 4 “must not” travel to other tiers but people in other Tiers “should not” travel to Tier 4 and the guidance of travel overseas says both “should not” and “cannot”

  o Travelling out of a tier 4 area
  o You must stay at home and not leave your Tier 4 area, other than for legally permitted reasons such as:
  o travel to work where you cannot work from home
  o travel to education and for caring responsibilities
  o visit those in your support bubble – or your childcare bubble for childcare
  o attend hospital, GP and other medical appointments or visits where you have had an accident or are concerned about your health
  o The full list of exceptions will be published in the Regulations.

  o Travelling to a tier 4 area from a tier 1, 2 or 3 area
  o You should not travel into a Tier 4 area from another part of the UK, other than for reasons such as:
  o travel to work where you cannot work from home
  o travel to education and for caring responsibilities
  o to visit those in your support bubble – or your childcare bubble for childcare
  o to attend hospital, GP and other medical appointments or visits where you have had an accident or are concerned about your health

  o International travel to or from a tier 4 area
  o If you are in Tier 4, you should not be travelling abroad unless it is permitted. In addition, you should consider the public health advice in the country you are visiting

  o Staying away from home overnight
  o You cannot leave home for holidays or stays overnight away from your main home unless permitted by law. This means that holidays in the UK and abroad are not allowed. This includes staying in a second home or caravan, or staying with anyone you do not live with or are in a support bubble with.
  o You are allowed to stay overnight away from your home if you:
  o are unable to return to your main residence
  o need accommodation while moving house
  o need accommodation to attend a funeral or related commemorative event
  o require accommodation for work purposes or to provide voluntary services
  o are a child requiring accommodation for school or care
  o are homeless, seeking asylum or a vulnerable person seeking refuge
  o are an elite athlete or their support staff or parent, if the athlete is under 18 and it is necessary to be outside of the home for training or competition

• Accommodation

  o accommodation providers such as hotels, B&Bs and caravan parks may remain open for the specific reasons set out in law, including where guests are unable to return to their main residence, use that guest accommodation as their main residence, need accommodation while moving house, are self-isolating as required by law, or would otherwise be made homeless as a result of the accommodation closing. Accommodation providers are also encouraged to work cooperatively with Local Authorities to provide accommodation to vulnerable groups including the homeless in tier 4 areas.

• Other Tourism related Businesses

  o non-essential retail, such as clothing and homeware stores, vehicle showrooms (other than for rental), betting shops, tailors, tobacco and vape shops, electronic goods and mobile phone shops, and market stalls selling non-essential goods – these venues can continue to be able to operate click-and-collect (where goods are pre-ordered and collected off the premises) and delivery services
  o hospitality venues such as cafes, restaurants, pubs, bars and social clubs; with the exception of providing food and drink for takeaway (until 11pm), click-and-collect, drive-through or delivery
  o leisure and sports facilities such as leisure centres and indoor gyms, indoor swimming pools, indoor tennis and basketball courts, indoor fitness and dance studios, indoor climbing walls
  o entertainment venues such as theatres, concert halls, cinemas, museums and galleries, casinos, amusement arcades, bingo halls, bowling alleys, skating rinks, go-karting venues, indoor play and soft play centres and areas (including inflatable parks and trampolining centres), circuses, fairgrounds, funfairs, zoos and other animal attractions, water parks and theme parks
  o indoor attractions at botanical gardens, heritage homes and landmarks must also close, though outdoor grounds of these premises can stay open

• Weddings

  o Weddings and civil partnership ceremonies should not take place except in exceptional circumstances, for example where one of those getting married is seriously ill and not expected to recover (‘deathbed wedding’) or due to undergo debilitating treatment or life-changing surgery. These weddings are limited to 6 people.
  o If you live in a tier 4 area and are going to a wedding, funeral or linked commemorative event outside the tier 4 area, the event must follow the tier 4 gathering limits on the events.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tier-4-stay-at-home

First announcement of a new Tier 4 for London and areas of the South East from Midnight tonight (19 December 2020)

Some of the main points of the announcement are:

• Tier Four

  o Tier four restrictions will apply in all tier three areas in the South East, covering Kent, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Surrey (excluding Waverley), Gosport, Havant, Portsmouth, Rother and Hastings.
  o It will also apply in London (all 32 boroughs and the City of London) and the East of England (Bedford, Central Bedford, Milton Keynes, Luton, Peterborough, Hertfordshire, Essex (excluding Colchester, Uttlesford and Tendring).
  o All non-essential retail will have to close, along with hairdressers, nail bars, indoor gyms and leisure facilities.
  o A stay-at-home order will be issued to residents in Tier 4, with those travelling to work or for education exempt. That means people should not enter or leave tier 4 areas, and tier 4 residents must not stay overnight away from home.
  o People in Tier 4 cannot mix indoors with anyone not from their household and only one person in an open public space.
  o Communal worship can continue to take place in tier 4 areas.
  o The restrictions will last for two weeks, with the first review due on 30 December.

• Xmas Rules for Areas Outside Tier 4

  o The Xmas bubble will only apply to Xmas day rather than the previous 23rd to 27th December period
  o A Xmas bubble cannot include anyone from a Tier 4 area

https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/prime-ministers-statement-on-coronavirus-covid-19-19-december-2020