CRAVEN is to be placed in Tier 2, the equivalent of high alert, when the lockdown restrictions end on December two.

The Government has announced today its list of areas across the country which will be placed in a three-tier system.

North Yorkshire is to be in the middle tier with neighbouring West Yorkshire and Lancashire in the highest Tier 3 - very high alert.

Almost all parts of England will face tough coronavirus curbs with a ban on households mixing indoors and restrictions on hospitality after December 2.

Only the Isle of Wight, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly have been placed in the lowest Tier 1 set of restrictions.

In Tier 2 the restrictions mean a ban on households mixing indoors and pubs, and restaurants only able to sell alcohol with a “substantial meal”. The advice is to avoid travel to Tier 3 areas.

Tier 3 measures mean a ban on households mixing, except in limited circumstances such as parks; all hospitality venues closed except for takeaways and deliveries and all entertainment/accommodation venues closed.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said during today's announcement: "These are not easy decisions, but they have been made according to the best clinical advice.”

He told MPs: “Thanks to the shared sacrifice of everyone in recent weeks, in following the national restrictions, we have been able to start to bring the virus back under control and slow its growth, easing some of the pressure on the NHS.

“We will do this by returning to a regional tiered approach, saving the toughest measures for the parts of the country where prevalence remains too high.”

The chaotic handling of the announcement saw an online postcode checker allowing people to check which tier their area would be in launch before the official details were released. However it soon crashed.