All pubs, bars, restaurants and other hospitality venues across the whole of England are forced to start closing at 10 p.m. from Thursday as UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson tackles a second wave of COVID-19 infections.
Johnson, who will address both Parliament and the nation on Tuesday, will also say the hospitality sector will be restricted by law to table service only, according to excerpts of his remarks provided by his Downing Street office on Monday.
"No one underestimates the challenges the new measures will pose to many individuals and businesses. We know this won't be easy, but we must take further action to control the resurgence in cases of the virus and protect the NHS," he will say.
British pubs will be forced to close. /AFP
Large crowds in the Soho area of London on Saturday. /AFP
Shares in Britain's listed pubs and restaurant groups fell sharply on Monday in anticipation of the move. While there is no consistent policy for the country, the move will advance the closing time by at least an hour for most areas.
While a full lockdown remains a possibility, the PM is said to be very keen to avoid that.
The new measures are softer than those mooted in advice from government scientific advisers in recent weeks, which had included a two-week full lockdown as a "circuit-breaker" to halt the exponential increase in infections.
Britain will face an exponentially growing death rate from COVID-19 within weeks unless urgent action is taken to halt a rapidly spreading second wave of the outbreak, the country's senior medics warned on Monday.
In a televised address on Monday, the government's chief scientific and medical advisers warned that the UK had "turned a corner" for the worse and was on course for up to 50,000 new cases of coronavirus a day by mid-October, meaning up from 6,000 now which could lead to 200 deaths a day by the following month.
The COVID-19 alert level has also moved from Level 3 to Level 4 after the data showed the number of cases was rising rapidly. Level 4 indicates that the virus is in general circulation and transmission is high or rising exponentially.
Bar staff fills a glass wearing a protective face shield inside a bar. /AFP
The new rules represent another backwards step in Britain's recovery from a pandemic that has inflicted more deaths and more economic damage on the country than on European peers and has prompted widespread criticism of Johnson's leadership.
On Monday, Northern Ireland said it would extend existing restrictions in some localities on households mixing indoors across the whole of the province from Tuesday, while Wales slapped curbs on four more areas. Scotland said additional restrictions were almost certain to be imposed.
Johnson will address the nation at 1900 GMT on further ways he will confront the virus.
(With inputs from agencies)