Just weeks after imposing the new ‘Rule of Six’ for six months, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has hinted that it could be scrapped especially for Christmas Day, in a bid to allow residents in England to have a more ‘normal’ Christmas.
Speaking in an interview with ITV News just yesterday, the Prime Minister answered a number of questions about how the Coronavirus laws will affect the holiday period, responding when asked if Grandparents will need to be excluded from Christmas dinners with “We’re not saying that at all”.
Johnson added: “We will do everything we can to make sure Christmas for everybody is as normal as possible”.
A Government source also told The Sun last week: “The PM is anxious to avoid being portrayed as Scrooge.
“He’s fully aware that millions of people are making big sacrifices to defeat this virus and is considering ways to allow them to experience the joy of Christmas for at last part of the holiday season.”
The current Coronavirus regulations would mean large families would need to choose which members they’d like to spend Christmas with this year, with concerns that many Elderly grandparents in England could be left isolated on the big day if the rules are not changed.
Meanwhile, cases in the UK are higher than ever before, with the highest daily case number recorded this week as 7,143 in just 24 hours. The R number, which Boris Johnson has confirmed will need to fall below 1 to allow for any ‘Rule of Six’ changes to happen this Christmas, is currently between 1.3 and 1.6.
Currently, Leeds, Bradford, Kirklees, Calderdale and Middlesbrough are living under tightened lockdown restrictions, with bans on meeting other households in place. A number of Christmas events have also been cancelled across the region, including the popular Leeds Christmas Markets.
Read more: 16 Yorkshire Christmas Markets And Events That ARE Going Ahead This Year
