The Government has laid out what level of Covid-19 restrictions cities and counties across the East Midlands will face over the Christmas period.
Leicester and Leicestershire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire and Derby and Derbyshire will all remain under the tightest Tier 3 measures to try and slow the spread of the disease.
The Department of Health and Social Care said Rutland will remain in Tier 2.
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Health Secretary Matt Hancock told MPs nobody wants tighter restrictions than necessary.
He said: “I know tier 3 measures are tough but the best way to get out of them is to pull together and follow the rules.”
Bristol and Somerset have dropped from Tier 3 to Tier 2 as has Herefordshire, while large parts of Southern England face tougher restrictions, all of which remain in place until the next review, understood to be scheduled for December 30.
The “Very High Alert” level for the East Midlands will be seen as the worst possible news for pubs, bars, hotels, and restaurants – although non-essential shops can stay open.
East Midlands Chamber warned Christmas had been cancelled for large parts of the economy and urged the Government to do more to help the hospitality sector at what should be a crucial time of the year.
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Rather than allowing some boroughs and districts within individual counties to be in different tiers, as happened under the first tier system, the Government has once again decided to maintain county-wide measures.
The changes will come into force from 12.01am on Saturday December 19. But they will only be in place for four days until they're replaced by the Christmas bubbles on December 23.
Nottingham City Council leader Coun David Mellen said: “I know that people will be disappointed that Nottingham is remaining in Tier 3 restrictions for Covid-19.
“It has been a hard year for all of us – we had hoped that moving to Tier 2 would be a step in the right direction for returning to a more normal life.
“In particular, this will be hard news for the hospitality sector – our pubs and restaurants – that must now continue to remain closed.
“However, I understand why the decision has been made to keep our city at the Very High alert level.
“While we have seen a huge drop in the number of cases of Covid-19 since October, we know that the virus is still present in our communities – and we have started to see a small rise in positive cases again this week.
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“We also know that Covid-19 continues to put pressure on our hospitals.
“It is important that we do all we can to stick to the rules and stop the spread of the virus.
“At all times, I would ask people to continue to follow the guidance of “hands, face, space”.
“We must also all give careful consideration to how we form ‘Christmas bubbles’ next week.
“Although we will remain at Tier 3 until the next review at the end of December, citizens will have hard decisions to make over the festive period when the rules around households are relaxed from 23-27 December – there will be a desperate desire to see families and loved ones, but no one wants to pass on this disease to those they care about.
“I urge people to follow the advice when mixing households over Christmas: minimise time spent indoors, open windows and think carefully about how you spend your time and who you spend it with.
“This is a really important time of year, but it is also crucially important that people follow the guidance.”
East Midlands Chamber chief executive Scott Knowles said: “Today’s announcement confirms what many businesses had been fearing ever since we came out of national lockdown – that Christmas is indeed cancelled this year for parts of the economy that would usually prosper most during this time of year.
“There had been a glimmer of hope that restrictions would be eased in time for what is usually the busiest part of the festive period but effectively closing down the hospitality industry – as well as others such as events and tourism – in the East Midlands will now have a huge impact on affected businesses.
“Christmas income usually helps firms stock up cashflow to get through quieter periods in the first few months of the following year, so without this the Government must really step up and offer greater financial support that is targeted to those who need it most.
“Our most recent Quarterly Economic Survey, carried out in November, shows cashflow has worsened for the region’s businesses during every three-month period this year and, if we’re not careful, the cashflow crisis of 2020 will soon turn into the insolvency crisis of 2021.
“At the beginning of this month, the Chamber wrote to the Prime Minister, joining the British Chambers of Commerce in requesting full transparency from Government for businesses about the evidence base it is using to make decisions on closures.
"We are still waiting for this and there continues to be significant dissatisfaction among firms that are forced to close through no fault of their own and despite the major investment many have made in order to be Covid-secure.
“The data shows coronavirus cases and deaths have fallen dramatically in the East Midlands, with many rates below the national average, and yet there remains little sign of what the exit strategy is.
“It’s now the responsibility of Government to be clear on what exactly must happen for areas to come out of the heaviest local restrictions, as every week that passes under economic shutdown risks a longer and slower recovery, which will ultimately result in people losing their jobs, businesses and livelihoods.”