“The Prime Minister has today confirmed no further Covid restrictions will be put in place before Christmas.

He said there is currently not enough evidence on the severity of Omicron, the hospitalisation rate and the impact of the booster rollout to justify tougher measures before Christmas.

However the Prime Minister is clear the situation is finely balanced and remains difficult across the country, with the Omicron variant continuing to surge and cases at an all-time high.

The government will continue to monitor the data closely and will not hesitate to act after Christmas if necessary.”