Festive bubbles mean households will be able to meet up at Christmas for five days

It has been reported that households will be allowed to meet in bubble over Christmas for a number of days.

It is understood that ministers from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, while not agreed on a final set of regulations, have endorsed a sharing objective of allowed ‘some limited additional household bubbling for a small number of days’ over Christmas.

Families will choose their bubble in advance and then be allowed to spend time indoors with them, including at the pub.

Number 10 is yet to confirm how many days the reprieve will be applied to but reports suggest it could last between December 22nd and 28th. 

In a statement published on Sunday, the Cabinet Office and the devolved administrations emphasise that the public will have to remain ‘cautious’ and should avoid travel to minimise social contact wherever possible.

The news comes after the prime minister met with the cabinet virtually on Sunday to sign off a ‘Covid Winter Plan’.

It will reportedly see a return to a tougher version of the regional tiered system when England’s lockdown 2.0 ends on December 2nd. 

It is expected more areas will be placed into the higher levels of restrictions, which could mean some regions will face a ban on household mixing until the Christmas period, following criticism from government scientists. 

Mr Johnson is set to address parliament today with the proposals. 

The Independent reports that Sunak has hinted the government will scrap the 10pm curfew measure on bars and restaurants following the fierce criticism from dozens of Conservative MPs and Sir Keir Starmer. However, the BBC reports the curfew will remain but an additional hour to drink up with be added.

It is expected those hospitality businesses in tier 3 will be able to offer takeaway services and those in tier 2 can serve drinks with substantial meals.

It is also understood that Mr Johnson is set to allow the reopening of non-essential shops in all three tiers in order to boost retail in the festive period. 

On the government’s Christmas plans, the Cabinet Office added: “Welcoming the good progress made by all administrations over the past few days to design a single set of arrangements that can apply across the UK, ministers reiterated the importance of allowing families and friends to meet in a careful and limited way, while recognising that this will not be a normal festive period and the risks of transmission remain very real.

“In respect of Northern Ireland, ministers also recognised that people will want to see family and friends across the island of Ireland, and this is the subject of discussions with the Irish government.

“Work is continuing to finalise the arrangements, including relating to travel. The UK government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland executive hope to conclude this work this week, subject to agreement by each administration.”

Last week, Public Health England warned that for every day restrictions are eased, five days of more stringent measures will be required to combat and keep Covid-19 infections under control.

The BBC added that the exception to the new tier rules will be Christmas, something the government deem as a ‘necessity’. Adding it is a recognition of the break the public need from the slog of the pandemic and that significant numbers of people will ignore any attempt to ban gatherings.

On Sunday, the UK reported another 18,662 new coronavirus cases and 398 deaths within 28 days of a positive test. This brought the UK total to 55,024 deaths.