East Cambridgeshire and Fenland will continue to 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, with people in all other parts of England set to face more serious limits to their freedom.

Large swathes of the Midlands, North East and North West are in the most restrictive Tier 3, but Cambridgeshire will be in Tier 2.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said “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.

In Tier 2

*you must not socialise with anyone you do not live with or who is not in your support bubble in any indoor setting, whether at home or in a public place

*you must not socialise in a group of more than 6 people outside, including in a garden or a public space – this is called the ‘rule of 6’

*businesses and venues can continue to operate, in a COVID-Secure manner, other than those which remain closed by law, such as nightclubs

*pubs and bars must close, unless operating as restaurants. Hospitality venues can only serve alcohol with substantial meals

*hospitality businesses selling food or drink for consumption on their premises are required to:

*provide table service only, in premises which sell alcohol

*close between 11pm and 5am (hospitality venues in airports, ports, transport services and motorway service areas are exempt)

*stop taking orders after 10pm

*hospitality businesses and venues selling food and drink for consumption off the premises can continue to do so after 10pm as long as this is through delivery service, click-and-collect or drive-through

*early closure (11pm) applies to casinos, cinemas, theatres, museums, bowling alleys, amusement arcades, funfairs, theme parks, adventure parks and activities, and bingo halls. Cinemas, theatres and concert halls can stay open beyond 11pm in order to conclude performances that start before 10pm

*public attendance at outdoor and indoor events (performances and shows) is permitted, limited to whichever is lower: 50% capacity, or either 2,000 people outdoors or 1,000 people indoors

*public attendance at spectator sport and business events can resume inside and outside, subject to social contact rules and limited to whichever is lower: 50% capacity, or either 2,000 people outdoors or 1,000 people indoors

*places of worship remain open but you must not socialise with people from outside of your household or support bubble while you are indoors there, unless a legal exemption applies

*weddings and funerals can go ahead with restrictions on numbers of attendees – 15 people can attend wedding ceremonies and receptions, 30 people can attend funeral ceremonies, and 15 people can attend linked commemorative events such as wakes or stonesettings.

*organised outdoor sport, and physical activity and exercise classes can continue

*organised indoor sport, physical activity and exercise classes will only be permitted if it is possible for people to avoid mixing with people they do not live with (or share a support bubble with). There are exceptions for indoor disability sport, sport for educational purposes and supervised sport and physical activity for under-18s, which can take place with larger groups mixing

y*ou can continue to travel to venues or amenities which are open, but should aim to reduce the number of journeys you make where possible

*if you live in a tier 2 area, you must continue to follow tier 2 rules when you travel to a tier 1 area. Avoid travel to or overnight stays in tier 3 areas other than where necessary, such as for work, education, youth services, to receive medical treatment, or because of caring responsibilities. You can travel through a tier 3 area as a part of a longer journey

*for international travel see the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office travel advice for your destination and the travel corridors list

Here is the full list of Tiers and areas published by the Government

Tier 1: Medium alert

- South East

Isle of Wight

South West

Cornwall

Isles of Scilly

Tier 2: High alert

- North West

Cumbria

Liverpool City Region

Warrington and Cheshire

- Yorkshire

York

North Yorkshire

West Midlands

Worcestershire

Herefordshire

Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin

- East Midlands

Rutland

Northamptonshire

- East of England

Suffolk

Hertfordshire

Cambridgeshire, including Peterborough

Norfolk

Essex, Thurrock and Southend on Sea

Bedfordshire and Milton Keynes

- London

all 32 boroughs plus the City of London

- South East

East Sussex

West Sussex

Brighton and Hove

Surrey

Reading

Wokingham

Bracknell Forest

Windsor and Maidenhead

West Berkshire

Hampshire (except the Isle of Wight), Portsmouth and Southampton

Buckinghamshire

Oxfordshire

- South West

South Somerset, Somerset West and Taunton, Mendip and Sedgemoor

Bath and North East Somerset

Dorset

Bournemouth

Christchurch

Poole

Gloucestershire

Wiltshire and Swindon

Devon

Tier 3: Very High alert

- North East

Tees Valley Combined Authority: Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees, Redcar and Cleveland, Darlington

North East Combined Authority: Sunderland, South Tyneside, Gateshead, Newcastle upon Tyne, North Tyneside, County Durham, Northumberland

- North West

Greater Manchester

Lancashire

Blackpool

Blackburn with Darwen

- Yorkshire and The Humber

The Humber

West Yorkshire

South Yorkshire

- West Midlands

Birmingham and Black Country

Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent

Warwickshire, Coventry and Solihull

- East Midlands

Derby and Derbyshire

Nottingham and Nottinghamshire

Leicester and Leicestershire

Lincolnshire

- South East

Slough (remainder of Berkshire is tier 2: High alert)

Kent and Medway

- South West

Bristol

South Gloucestershire

North Somerset