Ministers have plunged more than 50million people in England into a grim new lockdown system which will see them unable to see their families and friends.
The vast majority of the country is now in either Tier 2 or Tier 3 after ministers unveiled the full list of tiers for every part of England.
All hospitality venues must shut in Tier 3, while pubs in Tier 2 must shut unless they can operate as a restaurant.
The announcement confirmed more than 20million people will be in Tier 3 while more than 30million will be in Tier 2.
In the entire country, only the Isle of Wight, Cornwall and Isles of Scilly are in Tier 1, where gatherings of up to six people are allowed indoors.
Matt Hancock has pledged to review the tiers cities are placed in every few weeks - but how will that be decided.
These are the five key points ministers and officials used to decide.
- Analysis of cases across all age groups : Officials looked at the total number of cases in an area, their geographical spread and if they are on the rise.
- Analysis of cases specifically among the over-60s: Because older people are particularly vulnerable to serious cases of the diseases the number of cases among older people was considered separately from the general population.
- Rate by which cases are rising or falling: How is the R rate changing in a particular area - how fast are people spreading the virus
- Percentage of those tested in local populations who are found to have Covid (e.g. cases per 100,000)
- Current and projected pressures on the NHS: While cases may be on the downward swing in some areas the key determining factor might be the ability of the NHS ICU facilities to cope with predicted pressures.
How the measures will be balanced against each other is quite complicated.
According to the Government's own plan they will need to "maintain some flexibility to weight these indicators against each other as the context demands".
It continues: "For example, hospital capacity in a given area will need to be considered in the light of the capacity in neighbouring areas and the feasibility of moving patients.
"Case detection rates will need to be weighted against whether the spread of the virus appears to be localised to particular communities. Given these sensitivities, it is not possible to set rigid thresholds for these indicators, as doing so would result in poorer quality decisions.
"The Government will, however, be transparent about the decisions that it takes and make available the evidence informing those decisions."
A sixth - less explicit - indicator will be factored into decisions.
The government's documents add: "The movement of areas up and down tiers will also be informed by broader economic and practical considerations, such as the anticipated movement of individuals between areas."
Elsewhere under the new system:
– In Tier 2, alcohol may only be served in hospitality settings as part of a substantial meal.
– In Tier 3, pubs and restaurants will only be able to offer takeaway and delivery services, while indoor entertainment, hotels and other accommodation will close.
The 10pm curfew will be relaxed, with last orders now closed at that time and premises ordered to shut at 11pm.
Setting out other measures that will be eased as the lockdown lifts, Mr Johnson said: “From next Wednesday people will be able to leave their home for any purpose and meet others in outdoor public spaces, subject to the rule of six, collective worship, weddings and outdoor sports can resume, and shops, personal care, gyms and the wider leisure sector can reopen.
“But without sensible precautions, we would risk the virus escalating into a winter or New Year surge.”
Despite the tougher measures, the Government’s scientific advisers warned they might not go far enough and a “Tier 4” may be required in areas where Tier 3 restrictions are not able to shrink the epidemic.
The Sage scientific advisory panel also questioned the value of Tier 1, concluding that “Tier 2 is the minimum intervention required to maintain any degree of control on transmission”.
As well as the progress on vaccines, Mr Johnson pointed to the expansion of rapid mass testing as a way of returning to something approaching normality.
This could include allowing people who test negative greater freedoms and the prospect of a daily test replacing precautionary self-isolation for people who come into contact with a coronavirus case.
Despite the progress on a vaccine and the testing developments, Mr Johnson acknowledged “this will still be a hard winter, Christmas cannot be normal and there is a long road to spring”.
“But we have turned a corner and the escape route is in sight,” he said.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the Prime Minister’s strategy was “risky” because the previous tiered system failed.
With Tory unrest over the impact of the restrictions on the economy and civil liberties, Labour support could be crucial and Sir Keir said his party had backed previous measures.
“Ideally, I’d like to be in a position to do so again,” he said. “But there are huge gaps in this plan, huge uncertainties and huge risks.”
