PUBS and restaurants in England's coronavirus hotspots look set to face fresh restrictions after Downing Street said new data suggests there is "significant" transmission taking place in hospitality settings.
Downing Street said that a "range of measures" is being looked at, with a particular focus on northern England, where it says infection rates are rising fastest.
It comes after pubs and restaurants across Scotland's central belt are set to close for two weeks in an effort to slow the spread of Covid-19.
Meanwhile hospitality premises across the rest of Scotland cannot serve alcohol indoors, and will only be able to open internal areas from 6am to 6pm.
UK ministers are now considering fresh financial packages to help areas and industries hardest hit by lockdowns amid widespread calls for support.
READ MORE: Scotland's Covid ‘circuit breaker’ lockdown rules: What they mean for you
But with infection rates soaring in cities including Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle, regional leaders criticised the Tory Government for not consulting them ahead of changes.
Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick did not rule out telling pubs to shut as he warned cases in the North and Midlands areas including Nottingham were "rising fast and that is a serious situation".
Leaked UK Government documents disclosed that a new three-tier system for restrictions will be announced on Monday before measures come into force on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson's official spokesman said: "We are seeing coronavirus cases rise across the entire country but they are rising faster in the North East and the North West.
"We are keeping the data under close review and we are considering a range of options to reduce the spread of the virus in order to protect communities and to protect the NHS."
He suggested new restrictions on hospitality could be introduced in England as ministers come under pressure to act after Scotland announced fresh restrictions on the hospitality sector.
"Early data does suggest that a significant proportion of exposure to the virus is seen in the hospitality sector, and that is even more pronounced in younger age groups where we have been seeing the most rapid rise in infections," the spokesman said.
"The data is new and we will continue to gather evidence and review it."
He added he is not yet in a position to publish it.
Health minister Nadine Dorries said further measures are needed because hospital admissions could be at a "critical stage" in around 10 days' time.
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