Tier 3 restrictions are also being expanded to Liverpool and North Yorkshire. The changes come into effect after midnight. The health secretary said: "The new variant means that three quarters of the population are now going to be in Tier 4 and almost all of the country in Tiers 3 and 4. "And I know that Tier 3 and 4 measures place a significant burden on people, and especially on businesses affected, but I am afraid it is absolutely necessary because of the number of cases that we've seen. "But where we are still able to give places greater freedoms, we will continue to do so."