Health Secretary Matt Hancock has praised the speed of the covid vaccination rollout in the Harrogate district.

Responding to a question in the House of Commons yesterday from Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones, Mr Hancock said health staff in the district had done an “amazing job” delivering the vaccine.

He said it meant Harrogate had a higher number of residents vaccinated than the national average.

Mr Hancock said:

“May I put on the record my thanks to the team in Harrogate, who have done an amazing job vaccinating over 30,000 people — more than the national average, if my memory serves me correctly?

“I thank my honourable friend for his leadership in Harrogate and for supporting the team there to make this happen.”

Mr Jones had asked if the UK was on track to give everyone their second dose of the vaccine within 12 weeks of the first. Mr Hancock said it was.

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Data published last week by NHS England revealed that 48,000 people in the Harrogate district have now received one of the approved vaccines.

Harrogate, Ripon, and now Knaresborough, all have vaccination sites.

In an interview with the Stray Ferret, Dr Chris Preece, a GP partner in Boroughbridge and Knaresborough, said that Harrogate’s Great Yorkshire Showground site was able to carry out up to 1,800 vaccinations a day.

The government has announced that the Harrogate district will move into tier 3.

The decision, which comes into effect at one minute past midnight, means pubs and restaurants will only be able to provide takeaways.

It will force many people to change their New Year’s eve plans.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock made the announcement this afternoon as part of a review of the national tiers.

Tier rules are based on factors such as infection rates, particularly in the over 60s, and pressure on hospitals.

North Yorkshire was previously in tier 2 but rising rates, especially in Scarborough and Hambleton, prompted the decision along with concern about the spread of the new mutant strain of covid.

The Harrogate district’s infection rate has also risen considerably over the last fortnight, albeit less dramatically.

Public Health England confirmed another another 47 positive cases yesterday and the R number rose above one for the first time in over a month.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock made the announcement this afternoon.

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What are the rules in tier three?

• You must not meet socially with anybody you do not live with or have a support bubble with.
• However, a group of up to six may meet outdoors in some public places, such as parks and beaches.
• Shops, gyms and personal care services (such as hairdressing) can stay open, as can swimming pools.
• Small wedding ceremonies can take place but with no receptions.
• Hotels, B&Bs, campsites, holiday lets and guest houses must close.
• Indoor play centres and areas, including soft play centres and areas must close.
• Leisure and sports facilities may continue to stay open, but group exercise classes (including fitness and dance) should not go ahead.
• Work from home where possible.
• No supporters are allowed into sporting events.
• The advice is not to travel to-and-from tier three areas.

The Harrogate district is to remain in tier two as millions more people in England learned this afternoon they will be put under tougher restrictions on Boxing Day.

In a 3pm government coronavirus update, Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced that huge swathes of the country will be moved up tiers on December 26.

Essex, Norfolk, Sussex, Surrey, Oxfordshire and Hampshire will go into tier four.

Bristol, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Swindon, Isle of Wight, New Forest, Northamptonshire, Cheshire and Warrington will enter tier three restrictions.

And Cornwall and Herefordshire will move into tier two,

Minsters discussed further restrictions today amid fears that a new variant of coronavirus is spreading.

Mr Hancock said this wasn’t the news he wanted to deliver at Christmas. He added:

“Just as we have got a tiered system in place, we have discovered a new more contagious virus, a variant which is spreading at a dangerous rate.”

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Mr Hancock also announced all data on the Oxford vaccine has been submitted to the UK’s medicine regulator for approval.

Public health bosses in North Yorkshire warned this week people should brace themselves for the new variant.

They also warned that Scarborough’s case rate could see the county moved up to tier three if not brought under control.

Scarborough has the highest case rate in the county with 269 infections per 100,000 people; the Harrogate district has the lowest at 89.

The county’s seven-day case average currently stands at 139 per 100,000 people, below that of the England average at 319.

Health secretary Matt Hancock has said the government is prepared to consider district rather than county-wide covid tiers in North Yorkshire in response to variable transmission rates.

This would mean some parts of the county could be placed in a higher category — and be subject to greater restrictions — than others.

The Harrogate district currently has the highest infection rate of the seven district council areas in North Yorkshire.

York, which is a unitary authority, does however have a higher rate than Harrogate.

In the House of Commons yesterday, Thirsk and Malton Conservative MP Kevin Hollinrake asked Mr Hancock:

“The rate of transmission varies significantly within the eight different districts of North Yorkshire.

“When we are looking at putting different areas into different tiers, can we look at that by district rather than at county level?”

Mr Hancock replied:

“Yes, absolutely, and I will go further than that: we look at this at sub-district level, if that is appropriate.”

He said this had already happened in High Peak, Derbyshire, where some areas are in level 2 and others are in level 1.

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Mr Hancock added, however, that it was not purely down to transmission rates:

“Some districts within North Yorkshire have individual outbreaks in individual institutions that we are managing, and we should not mistake that for general community transmission and therefore put those areas into a higher level than is necessary.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the new tier system on Monday, which placed all of North Yorkshire in tier 1, which is the lowest category.

The Nightingale hospital being created at Harrogate Convention Centre will be officially opened today, with three high profile names set to take part in the ceremony.

Captain Tom Moore, the veteran who has raised more than £27m for NHS Charities Together, will join Health Secretary Matt Hancock and NHS chief executive Simon Stevens via video link this afternoon.

One of seven of its kind around the country, NHS Nightingale Yorkshire and the Humber has been constructed in less than three weeks and will offer 500 beds for coronavirus patients should existing local services be unable to meet demand.

NHS England says it has already freed up 33,000 additional beds and, in an unprecedented deal, has access to 8,000 beds through the independent healthcare sector. As a result, it says, capacity still exists in hospitals but Nightingale hospitals will be ready to take patients if needed.

Staff pose for photos at the official opening of the NHS Nightingale hospital in Harrogate

Steve Russell, chief executive of NHS Nightingale Hospital Yorkshire and The Humber, and of Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, said: “This new NHS Nightingale Hospital – like the others across the country – is an extraordinary achievement, and provides local people and staff with the reassurance that there will be additional beds available if they are required. It is a vital insurance policy, which we hope will not be needed.

“Our doctors, nurses, therapists and other health and social care staff across Yorkshire and the Humber are working incredibly hard to make sure people get the care they need during what is the single greatest challenge in the history of the NHS, but they can’t do it alone. The most important thing remains for the public to continue to follow expert advice and stay at home – reducing the number of people who get the virus, and therefore the need for NHS treatment.”

The huge effort by NHS staff, members of the armed forces and the team at Harrogate Convention Centre was praised by Mr Hancock. He said:

 “I have been incredibly impressed by the sheer dedication, professionalism and altruism of everyone involved in setting up NHS Nightingale Yorkshire and The Humber – from the NHS clinical staff and engineers to the construction workers and military planners.

“It’s an honour to be asked to open this hospital alongside Captain Tom Moore. During this worrying and difficult time for our whole country his phenomenal achievement has reminded us of our common bonds and served to further unite us. My heartfelt thanks also goes out to all the staff who will be working on the ground, providing extra capacity for patients if local hospitals need it.”

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• Video: A rapid feat of construction and engineering
• Video: Celebrities praise NHS workers at Harrogate’s Nightingale hospital