Covid-19: How will London and Essex cope with Tier 2 rules? (Copy)

How will London & Essex cope with tougher Covid-19 Rules?

Millions of people across England will be banned from meeting friends and family inside their household from Saturday. The regions have been told they will move to stricter Tier 2 restrictions to try and stop the spread of coronavirus. But how will locals cope with the new rules?

The restrictions in London, Essex, York and other areas mean more than half of England's population will be living under high or very high-alert restrictions.

The infection rate in London has been steadily increasing for several weeks and in the week to 9 October it was 77.8 cases per 100,000 people.

Henry Conlon owns the Dublin Castle, an iconic pub and live music venue in the capital's Camden region, and he fears the worst.

"This is the day the music died," he said.

"If you can't meet your mates in the pub, then what's the point in them?

"The 10pm curfew really stuck the knife in, but there was a bit of hope when things were returning to normality.

"We'll be lucky if we can keep our staff after this."

Tougher Tier 2 restrictions will put up to 250,000 jobs at risk in London's hospitality sector, according to the industry's trade body.