Coronavirus restrictions: London and other areas moved to Tier 2

London, Essex, Elmbridge in Surrey, Barrow-in-Furness, York, North East Derbyshire, Erewash and Chesterfield will all move to the high local alert level, Tier 2, from Saturday.

A new three tier system was introduced on Wednesday 14 October, and means that different areas in England will be on medium, high or very high alert, and have to follow different rules.

There have also been talks that Greater Manchester might be moved up to Tier 3 - the highest tier but this has not been confirmed yet.

This means that there will be tighter restrictions on how people meet up, which places can open, and even how far away people can travel.

This is because the number of cases of coronavirus in England has quadrupled in last three weeks and there are more people in hospital with coronavirus than before we went into lockdown in March - so these new restrictions are being put in place to try and help that.

The government's Health Secretary Matt Hanckock said: "We make these decisions with a heavy heart with the sole aim to steering our nation through troubled waters."

Things will get worse before they get better but I know that there are brighter skies and calmer seas ahead" he said.

What are the rules for Tier 2?

Under Tier 2, people from different homes can only mix outside, as long as the rule of six and social distancing are followed.

As well as that, pubs will have to close at 10pm.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said there was "simply no other option".

"Nobody wants to see more restrictions but this is deemed to be necessary in order to protect Londoners," Mr Khan said.

Nottinghamshire, East and West Cheshire and a small area of High Peak are also in this category, as well as parts of South Yorkshire, parts of the West Midlands, and north-east England.

What are the rules for Tier 3?

Tier 3 is the highest category in the government's new tier system, and has the strictest rules.

The very high alert level is caused when there has been a significant rise in cases, so additional and stricter rules apply.

Places like pubs which don't serve food and leisure centres will have to close and people won't be allowed to travel between areas.

People will not be allowed to meet socially with others from different households indoors, or in some outdoor locations, apart from with those in their support bubble.

You cannot meet in private gardens or pub gardens, but can meet in parks, beaches, countryside or forests, as long as you are not in a group of more than six.

Shops, schools and universities can stay open and people can still go to work if they can't work from home.

So far only Liverpool is in this tier, but Greater Manchester may join them.