Liverpool, Warrington, Hartlepool and Middlesbrough have become the latest areas to enter local lockdowns, leaving more than a third of people in the UK living under even more restrictions.

The new bans in north-west England took effect at 11.01am on Saturday, just like in the north-east earlier this week.

Health Secretary during his announcement Matt Hancock With the exception of outdoor spaces such as parks and outdoor hospitality settings – residents of the four regions are urged not to mix socially with other family members.

And he told them to avoid “all essential travel” – which means people can still go to work and school.

Mr Hancock said: “In some parts of the country, The Report Virus Liverpool is spreading fast with 268 shootings per 100,000 people. “

But inside the second spike COVID-19 He claimed that while the cases were highly localized, the recent move had a “positive effect”.

The Prime Minister has defended the current raft of local lockdowns and appealed for patience in the fight against the disease.

Mr. Johnson has faced a backlash in recent days over the way he has launched such a national lockdown without MPs speaking out.

But in an interview with the Telegraph, he said there was a “moral imperative” for taking life-saving measures in what was being called a “one-time-a-century event.”

“I sympathize with those who were disbanded because of the curfew and other social restrictions imposed on them at 10 pm,” she said.

He added: “I think everyone is upset – I urge people to be a little more patient.

“We’ll go through this and we’ll save a lot of lives, and that’s the best I can say.

“I think there is a moral obligation to save lives wherever you can.”

His comments still come as more university students tested positive The University of Northambria in Newcastle-to-Teen said it was aware of 70,770 cases as of Friday, of which symp 78 was symptomatic..

New statistics show that the reproductive number of coronavirus infections, or R values, is still above 1 across the country and continues to rise.

The government advisory committee shows the data published by SAJJ Estimates for the UK as a whole – the rate at which the virus is spreading – range from 1.3 to 1.6. Last week, the numbers ranged from 1.2.3 to 1.5.5.