Boris Johnson refuses to rule out a THIRD national lockdown after Sage model warns Britain needs to increase vaccination rate from 350,000 people a week to TWO MILLION to avoid 45,000 extra deaths from mutated Kent coronavirus
The Prime Minister warned people it will continue to be difficult because of the new strain of coronavirus
Members of SAGE sub-group SPI-M said the variant will infect a lot more people because it spreads faster
The variant is concentrated in London, the East and South East of England but is spreading elsewhere
Two cases of a second, potentially even faster spreading variant from South Africa were announced last night
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Scores of furious Britons already stuck in Tier 4 today moaned about how families in regions due to be moved to the highest lockdown level will still be able to gather on Christmas Day.
Twitter users living in Tier 4 areas complained about having their Christmas plans ruined with just eight hours notice while people due to be plunged into the draconian lockdown have 48 hours.
They hit out at Matt Hancock s delayed extension of Covid curbs, calling it an absolute joke , unfair and ridiculous .
Hospitality chiefs also blasted the disastrous move amid fears Tier 4 restrictions wreck the economy and will cripple a sector already on its knees .
NHS workers are frustrated that admin staff are being offered the Covid-19 vaccine before frontline doctors and nurses and that hospitals and GP surgeries face delays to deliveries of the crucial jab.
The British Medical Association (BMA) warned it was deeply worrying that access to the jab was not equal across the health service, amid concerns that GPs in high risk roles are being turned away from vaccination hubs.
Writing in a letter to the chief executive of NHS England Sir Simon Stevens, BMA chairman Dr Chaand Nagpaul said there was no consistent approach to vaccinating frontline staff for the virus, and urged trusts to prioritise those who are most at risk.
Department of Health data shows Covid infections are growing rapidly in London, the South East and East
But the presence of a new strain of Covid-19 could extend Tier 4 out to the South West, Midlands and North
Birmingham was spared from Tier 4 lockdown today - but new rules could be announced as soon as today
No10 s scientific advisers blame spread on a mutated form thought to be up to 70 per cent more infectious
Deaths have also started to soar in line with the spike in cases across the three badly-hit regions, data shows
Home Secretary Priti Patel refused to rule out national lockdown, commenting: Our objective is to save lives
Second mutant strain of coronavirus has already been found in the North AND London after being brought from South Africa - as infections soar again to new record of 39,237 with 744 more deaths and millions MORE are plunged into Tier 4 from Boxing Day
Two cases of the South African variant of the virus called 501.V2 have been detected so far in the UK
Second mutated strain to be found in as many weeks and this version is even more transmissible than first
Matt Hancock said discovery was highly concerning and slapped immediate travel bans on South Africa
Unrelated cases found in London and the North West suggest the virus is likely all over England already