Drinkers are preparing for their last night out this evening ahead of swathes of the Home Counties joining London in Tier 3 tomorrow along with Manchester and the North East.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock yesterday plunged numerous more counties into the top tier of coronavirus restrictions from this weekend and said large parts of the South East will go into ‘very high alert’.
These areas include Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Peterborough, the whole of Hertfordshire, Surrey with the exception of Waverley, Hastings and Rother on the Kent border of East Sussex, Portsmouth, Gosport and Havant in Hampshire.
Under the measures, people are not allowed to meet socially indoors, including in venues such as pubs and restaurants, with anyone outside of their support bubble or from another household.
It comes as the Met Police vows to crack down on anti-lockdown protests in London over the last weekend before Christmas, as organisers claim ‘many thousands’ will demonstrate in Parliament Square tomorrow.
Pubgoers pictured in Soho, London, earlier this week ahead of pubs and bars closing before the capital city went into Tier 3 at midnight on Wednesday
Police dispersed large numbers of street drinkers in Hackney Wick, east London, yesterday. The capital was placed under Tier 3 restrictions on Wednesday
Street drinkers are seen in Hackney Wick, east London, last night. Under Tier 3 measures, people cannot meet socially indoors, including in venues such as pubs and restaurants
Swathes of the Home Counties will join London in the highest tier tomorrow while Manchester and the North East were told they could not move down a grade despite recording fewer cases
The force said extra officers will be on the capital city’s streets to encourage compliance with strict Tier 3 Covid-19 regulations and to ‘swiftly clamp down on those wilfully and dangerously ignoring them’.
Scotland Yard issued an open letter published on the Met Police’s website ahead of the demonstration expected tomorrow, with others also planned around England
The force asked people not to attend any large gathering and warned they may be at risk of committing a criminal offence if they do.
Gatherings of more than six outdoors are illegal under coronavirus rules, although there is a list of exemptions which includes protests where all relevant safety precautions are in place.
The Police Federation, which represents rank and file officers in England and Wales, earlier this week wrote to Home Secretary Priti Patel highlighting the health risks to those policing protests.
National chairman John Apter and Met Police Federation chairman Ken Marsh described the Christmas footfall coupled with a mass demonstration as a potentially ‘deadly and unmanageable mix’.
Riot police clashed with anti-lockdown protesters in Oxford Circus in central London in November. The Met has vowed to crack down on demonstrations in the capital this weekend
The Met Police said extra officers will be on the capital city’s streets to encourage compliance with strict Tier 3 Covid-19 regulations (pictured: officers pin an anti-lockdown protester to the floor at Marble Arch in Hyde Park in central London during a mass rally)
The open letter comes as anti-lockdown protest organisers claim ‘many thousands’ will demonstrate in Parliament Square tomorrow
The Met said the force will focus on disrupting large gatherings adding that protest organisers must stick to Government regulations as well as their submitted risk assessment.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor said: ‘Where we become aware of planned events that will breach regulations, we will try to engage with organisers or venues to make them fully aware of the restrictions that are in place to keep people safe.
‘However, if people do not listen to our advice and fail to comply with the rules, we will be forced to take enforcement action.
‘With infection rates rising rapidly across the capital, we all need to play our part in preventing the spread of the virus.
‘This is the final weekend before Christmas, so now is not the time for complacency.
‘I know Londoners know what they should and should not be doing and I would urge everyone to act sensibly and do their part to keep our city safe.
‘Sticking to the guidelines put in place to keep us all safe and well is now more important than ever.
‘This weekend we will ensure we deal with the activity of a few so as not to expose our communities at even greater risk during this pandemic.’
Some 11 people were arrested after a demonstration by about 200 protesters in London’s Parliament Square on Monday for alleged offences including breach of Covid-19 regulations, Public Order Act offences and assaulting an emergency worker.
During the second national lockdown at the end of November more than 150 people were arrested as activists marched from Hyde Park to Oxford Circus and Regent Street, clashing with police.