Boris Johnson has brought in new tiers across London and south-east England after scientists said that a new coronavirus variant is spreading more rapidly.

The Prime Minister announced that from Sunday areas in the South East currently in Tier 3 will be moved into a new Tier 4 – effectively returning to the lockdown rules of November.

Non-essential shops, gyms, cinemas, hairdressers and bowling alleys will be forced to close for two weeks – while people will be restricted to meeting one other person from another household in an outdoor public space.

READ MORE: Boris Johnson expected to 'announce tightening of restrictions' amid fears of new Covid variant 

HEALTH Coronavirus(PA Graphics)

The rest of England will also see the Christmas “bubble” policy – allowing up to three household to meet up over the holiday period – severely curtailed, applying on Christmas Day only.

The move comes after scientists on the Government’s New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (NervTag) concluded that the mutant strain identified by Public Health England – known as VUI2020/01 – was spreading more quickly.

The Prime Minister was advised of the group’s conclusions at a meeting with ministers on Friday evening, and the new regulations were signed off by the Cabinet in a conference call on Saturday lunchtime.

The Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove has briefed the devolved administrations for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland on the group’s findings.

Under the new “stay at home” order – covering around a third of the population of England – people in Tier 4 will be told they should not stay away from home overnight and people from outside will be advised not to visit Tier 4 areas.

Boris Johnson acknowledged it was “unquestionably a difficult moment” in the coronavirus crisis but insisted that things would be “radically different” by Easter due to the vaccine.

“We will do everything that we can, as usual, to look after business, to look after jobs and livelihoods,” the Prime Minister said.

“And we’ll continue to do that with the loan scheme, with furloughing – which the Chancellor has now extended right the way through to the end of April.

“We’ll continue to look after businesses that are forced to close as a result of what is happening, they will receive the protections that we have put in place.”

Mr Johnson said it was a “race” and the Government was “doing our absolute level best to protect the public, whilst we know that the vaccine is arriving”.

“I’m more confident than ever that we’ll get that vaccine into a significant proportion of the population by the spring and that things will be radically different for our country by Easter,” he said.