The majority of England is now under Tier four restrictions as calls for a third national lockdown become louder with coronavirus cases continuing to surge.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned on Sunday, January 3 that curbs were “probably about to get tougher” despite three-quarters of England already being in Tier four.
While there is hope with the new Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine being rolled out, new variants of the Covid-19 strain being discovered means restrictions will likely still be in place in the coming months.
But it’s not just England struggling with to reduce the number of infections with many countries still inflicting strong measures on their populations to control the virus.
What countries are currently on lockdown?
Wales have been in lockdown since Sunday, December 20 and despite measures being reviewed every three weeks, First Minister Mark Drakeford has warned there is not ‘much headroom for change’.
Another announcement is expected on Friday, January 8 but with little expected to change, and with the next review not for another three weeks it means the lockdown could extend to the end of January.
Scotland’s stance remains the same. ‘All decisions just now are tough, with tough impacts,’ First Minister Nicola Sturgeon wrote on Twitter.
‘Vaccines give us way out, but this new strain makes the period between now and then the most dangerous since start of pandemic.’
Northern Ireland began a six-week lockdown on Boxing Day while Ireland will remain in Level five restrictions until at least the end of January.
Across Europe, Germany is considering extending its nationwide lockdown until the end of January to battle the highly contagious mutant strains of the virus.
In France, a national lockdown was eased on December 15 but plans for the reopening of museums and cinemas, promised for January 7 have been delayed, while restaurants and bars remain closed nationwide.
In early January, a nightly curfew in 15 departments in the east and south-east of the country was moved from 8pm to 6pm.
Greece’s strict Covid-19 lockdown was extended on Saturday, January 2 following a relaxation over the end of year festive period.
Italy has been in nationwide lockdown over much of the Christmas and New Year period.
Between December 24-27, December 31 and January 3 and January 5 and 6, people will be allowed to leave home for work, health and emergency reasons only.
Spain is under a nationwide curfew (between 11pm and 6am) until early May 2021 while Gibraltar recently introduced a second lockdown as cases soar.