Image source, Getty Images

The announcement of the new tier system for England means some football clubs can welcome a limited number of spectators back into their grounds after the national lockdown ends on 2 December.

Arsenal could be the first Premier League club to have home fans at the Emirates Stadium for their Europa League tie with Rapid Vienna on 3 December.

The first Premier League fixtures to welcome fans could be Brighton v Southampton, Chelsea v Leeds, Liverpool v Wolves, Tottenham v Arsenal and West Ham v Manchester United over the weekend of 5 and 6 December.

Six English Football League matches could see the return of fans on 2 December with Luton, Wycombe, Charlton, Shrewsbury, Cambridge and Carlisle all placed in tier two.

In tier one, a maximum of 4,000 fans will be allowed at outdoor events - although no clubs in League Two or above currently fall into tier one.

Up to 2,000 people will be allowed in tier two areas but none in tier three.

See which tier your club will be under here.

Image source, Reuters

Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram said the area's move from tier three into tier two was the result of "hard work, dedication and sacrifice".

Leaders thanked "each and every person" as it was announced the area would no longer be in the highest restriction tier when the national lockdown ends.

A mass testing pilot in Liverpool saw 300,000 people tested for Covid-19, including those without symptoms. Health Secretary Matt Hancock said cases in the city region were down by two thirds.

Read more here.

Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham says he can "understand the decision" to place the region in tier three "if you leave politics outside of it".

While the area has the fastest rate of decrease, he said, cases are still higher than the England average.

If the downward movement continues, he will ask the government to move Greater Manchester to tier two when they review measures.

"We are getting close to the borderline between tier three and tier two," he told the BBC News Channel.

But he said he could not agree with tier three as it stands - which is hitting hospitality extremely hard. He said it would have a "huge impact" on high streets.

Burnham also said it was not right for no additional business support to be given to tier three areas - so those in tier one get the same as those under the toughest restrictions.

Health experts say the only solution to the coronavirus pandemic is a global one, with many pinning their hopes on vaccines.

But Africa faces unique challenges - especially when it comes to vaccinating the continent.

John Nkengasong, director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, said today that he feared vaccination may not begin in Africa until the middle of next year.

"We are very concerned as a continent that we will not have access to vaccines in a timely fashion," he told a news conference.

He said that so far the coronavirus vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and manufactured by AstraZeneca offered "the best possibility for distribution in Africa", because it was cheaper than others and could be stored at fridge temperature.

Earlier, the BBC's Focus on Africa spoke to William Moss, executive director of the International Vaccine Access Center at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, to discuss what vaccines were best suited for use on the continent and why (see video above).

For more information about coronavirus vaccines:

• When will one be ready?
• How will I get a one?

Image source, PA Media

It is a "bitter blow" for Nottingham to be placed under tier-three restrictions, the Labour leader of the city's council has said.

David Mellen said people had done "an incredible job" of following the rules and driving down the city's rate of Covid infections from the highest in the country to below the national average.

“We had hoped that this would have meant we would be spared going into tier three," he said.

However, with the tiers reviewed every 14 days he said he hoped the city could be in tier two "before Christmas".

Image source, Reuters

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage has described the new tier system as "lockdown in all but name".

"I think that mass rulebreaking is coming," he said in a tweet, external.

Earlier this month Farage announced he had applied to change the Brexit Party's name to Reform UK, promising to focus on dealing with what he described as the government's "woeful" Covid response.

England's current lockdown, external will end just after midnight on Wednesday 2 December, after which regions will be placed in one of three tiers: medium, high or very high.

The vast majority of England will go into tiers two and three - high and very high.

Large parts of the Midlands, North East and North West, including Greater Manchester, as well as Kent, are in the very high tier, and will face the greatest restrictions.

There must be no socialising with other households indoors or in private gardens, and people must follow the rule of six if meeting outdoors. All indoor entertainment venues must shut, and hospitality venues must also close, except for delivery and takeaway services.

Travel to and from tier three areas should be avoided.

Most places in England are in the high level - tier two - including London, and Liverpool city region.

In these areas, indoor socialising with other households is not allowed, and the rule of six will apply for outdoor meetings. Pubs and bars can only open if they serve substantial meals, and alcohol can be served with a meal.

Shops, gyms and personal care services such as hairdressing can reopen if they are Covid-secure.

Only three areas will be in the lowest tier, medium: Cornwall, the Isle of Wight and the Scilly Isles. In these areas, the rule of six will apply indoors and outdoors, and pubs and restaurants can remain open til 23:00 GMT.

You can read more about what you can and can’t do in each tier here.

Image source, EPA

Italy is to launch the first "Covid-free" air corridor between Europe and the US for passengers who test negative for coronavirus, removing the need to quarantine on arrival.

Rome's Fiumicino airport announced today that it had reached an agreement with Italy's Alitalia airline and Delta Air Lines in the US for flights between some North American cities and the Italian capital from December.

Under the agreement, passengers will receive Covid-19 tests 48 hours before departure in the US and then again on arrival in Rome - if results are negative, they will avoid the mandatory 14-day quarantine imposed on arrivals in Italy.

"Carefully designed Covid-19 testing protocols are the best path for resuming international travel safely and without quarantine until vaccinations are widely in place," Steve Sear of Delta said.

Aeroporti di Roma (ADR), which runs Fiumicino airport, said similar corridors will also be trialled between Rome and the German cities of Munich and Frankfurt.

The World at One
BBC Radio 4

Image source, Reuters

Senior Tory MP Sir Graham Brady says he will vote against the new tiered coronavirus restrictions when they go before the House of Commons next week.

The chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbenchers told BBC Radio 4's the World at One: "I have severe reservations on so many different levels.

"I do think that the policies have been far too authoritarian. I think they have interfered in people's private and personal lives in a way which is unacceptable."

He said the tier system was a "really heavy-handed approach" which "instead of looking at the actual local data and the facts on the ground, is going on a county-wide basis where it is not justified".

He added: "I think when we look, in particular, at the experience of places like Greater Manchester... I think there is a limit to what it is reasonable to expect communities to absorb.

"There has got to be a real danger that, if these restrictions aren't lifted very, very soon now, there will be a lot of businesses that simply won't reopen."

Brady said he could not say how many other Tory MPs would join him in voting against the new restrictions.

Image source, PA Media

The hospitality sector is "bearing the brunt of the pain of closure" under new Covid rules, the industry has warned.

UK Hospitality boss Kate Nicholls warned tens of thousands of businesses would close without additional support, leading to more than a million job losses.

Ms Nicholls said 98% of its members were in areas with tier-two or tier-three coronavirus restrictions, and nearly all of those businesses "say that they are not viable to operate at those level of restrictions".

Under the new restrictions, which come into force after lockdown ends on 2 December, pubs in tier-two regions can only open if they serve substantial meals and households are not allowed to mix indoors.

Under tier three, pubs and restaurants must close their doors but can offer takeaways.

Read more.

Details of which tier of Covid restrictions each area of England will be in from 2 December have been announced.

Scotland has moved to a five-tier system of coronavirus restrictions. Wales has now ended a "circuit breaker" while Northern Ireland has extended its own temporary lockdown.

Click here to use our tool to look up the restrictions where you live.

BBC Monitoring
The world through its media

Officials in Ukraine are calling for the introduction of a national lockdown after the country registered a record high of 15,331 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday.

Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said "a lockdown should be introduced as soon as possible... for three or four weeks".

Speaking to broadcaster Ukrayina 24, Avakov said it was necessary to "respond right now".

"Yes, the situation is difficult for everyone... but the risks are such that we need to take serious decisions."

He said that the decision was unlikely to be a popular one, and that a "compensation" scheme would be needed.

Avakov suggested that the government could introduce a "radical lockdown" in a couple of days, and did not rule out that travel across the country may be suspended.

"God willing, we will be lifting a lockdown in a good mood and with good figures by the New Year," he added.

Almost all of England will be under the two toughest levels of restrictions when lockdown ends next week, with only the Isle of Wight, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly in tier one.

The map below shows how most areas will be in higher tiers than pre-lockdown.

You'll read lots today about how England is returning to a regionalised approach to Coronavirus restrictions next week, with the tier system coming back.

But we have done some number crunching -- and cross checked our maths with the government's own figures.

Take a look at the table below.

More than 22 million people who were in tier one won't be any longer.

And there are 15 million more people in tier three.

This will feel very, very different for lots and lots of people.

Image source, BBC News

Image source, Reuters

An inventor in Egypt is trialing a remote-controlled robot to carry out Covid-19 testing by placing swabs into a patient's mouth.

Mahmoud el-Komy, who has put the robot to work at a hospital in the capital Cairo, says it can also take the temperature of patients and warn them if they are without a face mask.

He says the device, called Cira-03, can help limit exposure to infection and prevent spreading.

Cira-03 can take blood tests and display the results to patients on a screen attached to its chest.

Mahmoud says his creation, which has human-like features such as a head and arms, was developed in a way to prevent fear among patients, Reuters news agency reports.

"They don't feel like a box is walking in on them," he said, adding: "There has been a positive response from patients. They saw the robot and weren't afraid. On the contrary, there is more trust in this because the robot is more precise than humans."

Chris Mason
Political Correspondent

Alongside the list of areas and tiers around England, the government has published its justification for each decision it has taken.

It is well worth a read here, external.

Ministers know that it is an inevitability of a regionalised approach that there will be a blizzard of questions, all of which add up to 'Why is Place A in Tier B?'

This is an attempt to answer those questions - or at least to begin to.

The problem, though, is if your approach is underpinned by the notion that geography matters, critics can, and are, pointing to local geography that they believe would have justified more local subtlety in which areas end up in which tier.

Note the reaction in Lincolnshire, Kent and Lancashire, where some are saying imposing tier-three restrictions across those counties fails to account for significant variations within them.

Sarah Payne, a fruit and veg seller in West Bromwich High Street, only took over her pitch four weeks ago.

She worries she will struggle to pay her rent as people will be afraid to come out after lockdown, now the region will be in tier three.

"It's just not happening. I'm struggling to find the money to pay for my pitch. I can't see it's going to get better," she told the World at One.

And in Kent, also going into tier three, businesses are also unhappy.

Mark Bridgen, who runs The Dog at Wingham pub just outside Canterbury, told the programme he was feeling "a little shell-shocked if I'm honest and very disappointed".

He said the pub was fully booked for next week - and now will not be able to open. He's hoping they can now open in time for Christmas when the tiers are reviewed.

Kent Invicta Chamber of Commerce chief Jo James said: "I have spoken to a few and they are absolutely devastated by it but on the whole it was expected.

"I think there is no doubt about it, it's disappointing that we have been placed in tier three.

"I can understand why, because we do have some of the highest levels of infection in some of our districts, but, that said, we do have some of the lowest levels of infection.

"It's such a shame that somewhere like Kent, that is one of the biggest counties in the country, has to be taken as a whole."

Meanwhile, Karen Hill, a hairdresser in Oldham, said she is glad she can reopen but she expects business to be quiet: "I do feel better that we can open, but because there's not going to be Christmas dos, it's not going to be our normal December.

"No-one's going to be going anywhere in January and February, so we're not going to have the new year, new me."

Image source, Getty Images

Following Denmark's mass culling of millions of mink after an outbreak of coronavirus at farms in the country, some of the dead animals are reportedly now returning to the surface from shallow graves due to gases built up in their bodies.

"The gases cause the animals to expand and in the worst cases, the mink get pushed out of the ground," the authorities have said.

Jannike Elmegaard, of the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration, said that "a few hundred" mink had been affected.

Elmegaard told the Associated Press news agency that an initial layer of mink was buried in trenches up to 2.5m (8.2 ft) deep, then covered with chalk and another layer of animals before then being covered with more soil.

In some areas, he said, the soil is sandy, causing a number of mink to re-emerge.

"We assume it is the mink that were in the upper layer that pop up," he added, calling it "a natural process".

There was shock when Denmark decided to cull all its mink - up to 17 million animals - because of the spread of coronavirus. That national cull turned into a political outcry after the prime minister admitted that the plan was rushed and had no legal basis.

• Read more about Denmark's cull here

MPs from around England have been giving their reactions to the tiers their constituencies have been put in. Here's what a few of then had to say:

Cat Smith, Labour MP for Lancaster and Fleetwood, says: “I’m furious that me and my constituents are in tier-three restrictions when my constituency has a lower infection rate than the neighbouring Cumbrian councils who get to be in tier two. How is this fair? What message is this ridiculous decision sending residents and businesses?"

Jack Dromey, Labour MP for Birmingham Erdington - which will be in tier three, says: "We must now ensure businesses and workers get the support they need, especially the hospitality sector, and mass testing is rolled out city-wide. Both will be crucial this winter."

Labour York Central MP Rachael Maskell tweeted: "Despite the incredible work of everyone in York, it has been placed in tier two.

"The government has selected large geographical areas, rather than study the local data. I await their rationale. I raised this with the health minister earlier this week and will do so again later today."

Image source, Reuters

The death of Argentine football legend Diego Maradona was always going to attract huge numbers of mourners but with Argentina among the top ten countries of confirmed Covid cases, crowd control has become more important than ever to the Argentine authorities.

Image source, EPA

After the footballer's death was announced, officials hurriedly erected cordons and barriers outside the presidential palace where his body lies in repose.

The government estimates that more than a million people will file past his body. While many of his supporters wore face masks emblazoned with Maradona's image, there was little social distancing as fans gathered overnight in Buenos Aires to celebrate the player's life.

Image source, Reuters

When the pandemic started, Argentina quickly introduced a strict lockdown which at first kept the number of cases low. But as measures were eased, the South American country saw a quick rise in infections which reached its peak in October when it registered more than 18,000 daily cases. The numbers have dropped since but still topped 8,500 daily cases on Wednesday.