Health chief expects Sheffield to be placed in new Tier 3 lockdown from December 2

But Greg Fell, Sheffield’s director of public health, says that with infection rates in the city and elsewhere in South Yorkshire continuing to fall he hopes to be ‘pleasantly surprised’.

The Government is set to announce this Thursday which of the new tiers different areas will fall into from next Wednesday, December 2.

England’s new tier system at a glance - and which areas could be in Tier 1, 2 or 3

Under the new system, shops and gyms will be able to open even in the highest tier, but cafes, restaurants and pubs serving substantial meals must stay shut, unlike under the previous Tier 3 rules.

Speaking to BBC Radio Sheffield this morning, Mr Fell said the infection rate was ‘coming down quite rapidly’ and ‘all the other numbers are going in the right direction’.

Asked which Tier he expects Sheffield to be in, he replied: “It’s difficult to call. My default assumption is that we will be in Tier 3 but, and it’s an important but, I think the decisions will be taken this week and they will be taken on the numbers at the time rather than the trend, so I will stick with my default assumption and hopefully I will be pleasantly surprised.”

Support bubbles will be widened when tier lockdowns return on December 2

The new Tier 2 restrictions are similar to the old Tier 3 rules, with only pubs operating as restaurants allowed to open and households banned from mixing indoors, though people will be allowed to gather in groups of up to six outdoors, including in private gardens.

Which areas are placed into which tiers will be reviewed every 14 days.

Boris Johnson has said that the coronavirus infection rate, the rate among over-60s, the speed at which cases are rising and falling, the percentage of people being tested who are positive for Covid-19 and the pressure on the NHS locally will all help determine which tier an area is placed into.

PM warns of 'difficult winter ahead' before coronavirus vaccine rollout can begin

Sheffield’s latest weekly coronavirus infection rate for the seven days to November 19 – the latest date for which reliable figures are available – is 258.2 new cases per 100,000 people.

That’s down from 309.5 the previous week and 424.9 on October 23, the day before Sheffield was placed into the old Tier 3 lockdown.