In full: 'Stay at home' - Boris Johnson announces national lockdown

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced a new four-week lockdown across England, starting from Thursday until 2nd December.

Alongside chief medical officer for England Professor Chris Whitty and chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance, Mr Johnson made the announcement saying, "Now is the time to take action because there is no alternative".

Non-essential shops, pubs, and restaurants will shut, but schools and universities will remain open.

The PM has acknowledged the strain on businesses, which he says he is "truly sorry" for. The furlough scheme will be extended throughout November in light of this.

The Government held an emergency cabinet meeting at 1:30pm today, following leaked rumours that a national lockdown could be on the cards from as early as next week.

The announcement was consistently pushed back, from 4pm, to 5pm, to 6:30pm and eventually appearing at around 6.50pm.

The hope is that the action will slow the spread of the disease and allow ministers to ease restrictions into Christmas.