England’s Chief Medical Officer, Chris Whitty goes next, with some data on the spread of Covid from official infection surveys.

He says there is "clear evidence" the virus is spreading throughout England.

But he adds it is nevertheless "heavily centred" in the areas already subject to more stringent restrictions.

However, he does strike a positive note, saying the interventions people have observed so far have helped.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak says he knows people are "frustrated" by the idea of further restrictions, but that he has a "comprehensive plan to protect jobs and businesses in every region" of the UK.

He says the new Job Support Scheme, which he announced last week, is one major part of a three-part plan to prop up the economy.

Other measures include a monthly cash grant for businesses forced to close by local restrictions, and £1.3bn of funding for the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish administrations if they agree to introduce similar measures, Sunak says.

Helen Catt
Political correspondent

Attention now turns to the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak.

Since Boris Johnson spoke in the Commons earlier, the guidance has been published and we’ve started to hear some concerns.

There are particular worries about the economic support on offer, so expect a few tough questions for Mr Sunak

Image source, PA Media

Boris Johnson sets out details of the new tier system of restrictions in England announced earlier.

He says no area will be "left to fend for themselves"

In the new "very high" alert level, he says, pubs will have to serve a "substantial meal" to all customers buying alcohol to count as restaurants (and therefore stay open).

Boris Johnson adds that "no one, least of all me" wants to impose further restrictions on local areas affected by a spike in Covid-19.

He says he is sure the public will "have the resolve" to "beat this virus", adding: "Together, we will do just that".

Opening the press conference, Boris Johnson says the fight against Covid is entering a "new and crucial" phase.

The prime minister adds death and hospitalisation figures are flashing like "dashboard warning signals in a passenger jet" and action is needed now.

The Downing Street press conference is under way, with the prime minister being joined by Chancellor Rishi Sunak and England's chief medical officer, Prof Chris Whitty.

Boris Johnson will give more details on the latest changes to the coronavirus restrictions in England which he outlined to Parliament earlier.

It's almost time for this evening's press conference with Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Chancellor Rishi Sunak and England's chief medical officer, Prof Chris Whitty, in Downing Street.

Follow our live stream of the press conference at the top of the page.

The PM was in Parliament earlier, outlining the new three-tier alert system for local coronavirus restrictions in England, which will take effect on Wednesday.

Here are some of the key things you need to know ahead of the conference:

• The new system is split into three alert levels: medium, high and very high. Most areas in England are in the medium alert level - meaning current restrictions continue, including the 10pm hospitality curfew
• Areas that already have local restrictions on household mixing will automatically be placed on "high" alert
• The Liverpool City Region is the only area, at the moment, to be placed in the "very high" category, with restrictions including that pubs, bars and betting shops will have to close
• For those areas on "very high" alert, there will be further financial support for improved contact tracing and more funding for local enforcement, as well as the offer of help from the armed services
• But the Labour mayor of Liverpool has said an argument for a stronger financial package for the city "wasn't listened to"
• The PM said all retail outlets, schools and universities will remain open

We'll hear more from the Prime Minister soon, but following today's announcement, a number of areas that did not previously have extra restrictions, will now have to operate under tier two (or high) rules.

The areas include all of Walsall and Nottinghamshire and parts of the Tees Valley, Cheshire, South Yorkshire and High Peak.

In total this is about 4.4 million people.

Places which already had extra local restrictions have also gone into the tier two category

Some of those will be moving to harsher restrictions, some easier. For example, Birmingham had a ban on household mixing in homes, but not in bars and restaurants, now households cannot mix in either indoor setting.

This means over 17 million people in England are living in tiers two (high) and three (very high) areas - that is about 30% of the population.

Most of England remains in tier one (medium) - where current national restrictions apply - such as the rule of six measure.

Hugh Pym
BBC News Health Editor

At Whiston Hospital on Merseyside, in north-west England, there has been a sharp rise in Covid-19 patient admissions over the weekend.

The catchment area includes Knowsley, which has one of the highest infection rates in the UK.

There were 65 coronavirus patients on Friday. Today there are 90. Of those, nine are in intensive care - double the number a week ago.

Staff I spoke to seemed surprised and concerned about the rapid pace of events.

They were prepared for a second wave and there is scope to expand critical care capacity further.

But, while back in March they were told to postpone all non-urgent operations and appointments to free up beds, this time they are expected to continue with all forms of care as well as the Covid surge.

And the hospital management has warned there may come a point soon when all routine work will have to be put on hold once again.

Reality Check

Image source, Getty Images

The question about whether there is a scientific reason for the 10pm closing time for pubs, bars and restaurants in England was raised again in the House of Commons.

Conservative MP – Rob Butler – asked the prime minister to confirm whether there was a scientific basis for “restrictions on economic activity”.

Boris Johnson said there was.

Evidence from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies,, external which reports to the government, has highlighted the general risk of venues serving alcohol.

"Smaller gatherings such as bars and nightclubs are higher risk as you can be in closer contact with others," a report in February warned.

But the Department for Health has not released the specific scientific advice on early closing – despite our requests.

It told us: "The 10pm closure allows people to continue to socialise while reducing the risk of failing to socially distance."

Read the analysis here.

Pallab Ghosh
Science correspondent

Image source, PA Media

The prime minister said his tier system aims to balance the risks to public health with the risks to the economy.

The idea is to impose the most severe restrictions in the areas where the infection rate is highest while allowing as much of normal life as possible to go on in areas where infection is lower.

But one senior adviser to the government’s scientific advisory group told me, off the record, that he didn’t believe the restrictions are strong enough.

The scientist said that they were “shocked” that tier one is simply maintaining the current rules – when the current rules are seeing an increase in cases across the country.

They said that it was not simply a matter of bringing the R number below one, but bringing it sufficiently below one that cases drop quickly and hospital capacity isn't overwhelmed.

Although there is scope for tighter restrictions under tier three, their worry is that these have to be negotiated locally, which introduces delay while infections may continue to rise.

The scientists added that they are “extremely worried” that tier three does not go far enough and that cases, hospitalisations and deaths will continue to rise in the worst affected areas although slightly slower than before.

Image source, Getty Images

The head of the World Health Organisation (WHO) has spoken out against supporters of a "herd immunity" approach to the pandemic.

Herd immunity occurs when a large portion of a community becomes immune to a disease - thereby breaking transmission and protecting those who are not immune.

It can be reached through vaccines, or when a sufficient number of people have recovered from a disease and developed resistance to future infection - or both.

Since no peer-approved coronavirus vaccine exists, some have argued for herd immunity by allowing the virus to spread.

But at a news conference, WHO chief Tedros Ghebreyesus called this "scientifically and ethically problematic".

He added that the long-term impacts of coronavirus are still unknown, and it is not clear how strong or lasting people's immune response can be.

"Letting Covid-19 circulate unchecked therefore means allowing unnecessary infections, suffering and death," said Dr Ghebreyesus.

Medium

• All areas, excluding those listed below

High

• Cheshire (Cheshire West and Chester, Cheshire East)
• Greater Manchester (Manchester, Bolton, Bury, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, Salford, Rochdale, Oldham)
• Warrington
• Derbyshire (High Peak - the wards of Tintwistle, Padfield, Dinting, St John’s, Old Glossop, Whitfield, Simmondley, Gamesley, Howard Town, Hadfield South, Hadfield North)
• Lancashire (Lancashire, Blackpool, Preston, Blackburn with Darwen, Burnley)
• West Yorkshire (Leeds, Bradford, Kirklees, Calderdale, Wakefield)
• South Yorkshire (Barnsley, Rotherham, Doncaster, Sheffield)
• North East (Newcastle, South Tyneside, North Tyneside, Gateshead, Sunderland, Durham, Northumberland)
• Tees Valley (Middlesborough, Redcar and Cleveland, Stockton-on-Tees, Darlington, Hartlepool)
• West Midlands (Birmingham, Sandwell, Solihull, Wolverhampton, Walsall)
• Leicester (Leicester, Oadby and Wigston)
• Nottingham (Nottinghamshire, Nottingham City)

Very High

• Liverpool City Region (Liverpool, Knowsley, Wirral, St Helens, Sefton, Halton)

Nick Triggle
Health Correspondent

Some will say ministers should have gone further, while others argue they have already gone too far.

But the problem with the restrictions that are being discussed is that no-one really knows what impact they will have.

Closing Covid-secure pubs, for example, could just drive people to gather more in homes where the risk of transmission is even greater.

The other factor, which is not grabbing the headlines today but is just as important, is whether the test and trace system is up to the job.

Test results are taking too long to return, contact tracers are failing to reach enough of the close contacts of infected individuals and, even when they do, most people do not follow the isolation guidelines to the letter.

Infections, hospitalisations and deaths are certainly going to rise - by how much and for how long is the big unknown.

Certainly with better treatments in place and the UK in a stronger position to protect care homes – four in 10 deaths were among their residents in the first wave – many believe the toll should not be as great as it was in the spring.

Sian Lloyd
BBC News Correspondent

There’s been a steady stream of cars at Nottingham’s drive-through testing centre today - at the Motorpoint Arena car park site in the heart of the city.

The area has the highest Covid rate per 100,000 people in England.

The rate in Nottingham shot up over a very short space of time and local public health officials have said that three quarters of all new cases are in the 18 to 22-year-old age group.

There are around 60,000 students in Nottingham at the city's two universities - who have been described as a significant part of the outbreak here, but by no means the whole story.

The transmission rate is said to be on the wrong path generally and public health officials say they would welcome uniform restrictions for both the city and wider county area.

Ellie Price
Daily and Sunday Politics reporter

The day is following a grimly familiar pattern.

It started with a data briefing from the Deputy Chief Medical Officer - painting a depressing scene of how the virus is spreading, particularly in areas of northern England.

The Prime Minister is now taking questions from more than 100 MPs, and this evening he will address the nation directly.

In the Commons, he set out more details of the three-level alert system. But the questions, and criticisms, have come at Mr Johnson from all sides of the House, highlighting his challenge.

Since March, the Labour Leader Keir Starmer has lent his broad support to government restrictions. But today he accused the PM of being "several steps behind the curve”.

There were numerous questions of whether the government could be more generous in its financial support for businesses affected.

And from Conservative MPs, some said individuals should be left to make their own decisions, with others saying tougher measures need to be imposed now.

Image source, EPA

The mayor of the West Midlands, Andy Street - who is a Conservative - has said he is "disappointed" about the majority of his area being moved into tier two, following the PM's announcement earlier, meaning stricter restrictions than those currently in place.

"This is not something regional leaders supported, nor what I believed would be happening following extensive conversations over recent days," he said.

"The region was united, cross-party, in supporting the existing restrictions".

Among the new restrictions that his area faces is a ban on households mixing in hospitality venues.

"This is something the latest local epidemiology does not support," says Mr Street in a tweet., external "I am disappointed the government is pressing ahead with this despite the united view of local leaders."

He is urging the government to review the decision, saying the evidence shows that the problem is transmission in household settings and the restriction on hospitality "will not solve that".

Reality Check

Image source, Getty Images

Boris Johnson said in a statement to the House of Commons that: “There are now more people in hospital with Covid than when we went into lockdown on March 23rd."

The prime minister is correct.

The latest Department of Health (DHSC) figures show there were 3,451 Covid-19 patients in hospitals across England, as of 11 October.

On 23 March, the day the prime minister announced the lockdown, there were 3,097 patients in hospital with confirmed cases of coronavirus.

However, back in March, the figures were increasing at a much faster rate.

On the day lockdown was announced, the number of patients in hospital was doubling every 3 days, however the latest figures from the DHSC suggest that the doubling rate is every 14 days.

We're still hearing from UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson in the Commons, as MPs question him over the new three-tier system.

He's also holding a press conference this evening - it's now expected at 19:00 BST.

He will be joined by Chancellor Rishi Sunak, and England's chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty.