'Cornwall will be in Tier One from 2nd December
The Health Secretary Matt Hancock has announced that Cornwall will be returning to Tier 1 next week.
This is clearly very welcome news for Cornwall and reflects the continuing low levels of covid-19 infection in the Duchy.
This will be particularly good news for the thousands of hospitality businesses which will be able to reopen under the lowest level of restrictions.
However whilst we can welcome this news it should be no grounds for complacency. Before we entered the national restrictions Cornwall was in Tier 1 and the number of cases in Cornwall was rising and continued to rise until last week. Clearly the new national restrictions have had the required effect and brought the virus back under control. This shows it was the right decision to introduce these measures.
It is now vital that everyone keeps to the new restrictions, keeps to the rules of six, maintains social distancing, washes their hands regularly and wears a mask when necessary. This will enable us to ensure cases do not rise and that we are able to stay in Tier 1 and do not face the prospect of having to be put in a higher tier in the coming weeks.
This will be particularly important as we enter the run up to Christmas and look to enjoy the relaxation of the restrictions. We want everyone to be able to enjoy the festive season at the end of what has been a tough year for everyone. But we must still behave responsibly and not take unnecessary risks that would put our own health and those around us at risk.'
Details of what the new Tier 1 restrictions are that will come into effect from 2nd Dec can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/local-restriction-tiers-what-you-need-to-know#medium-alert