Further to the announcement of the new tier system in England, those in the hotel industry have made comment.

Stuart Procter - COO The Stafford Collection, London & Lancashire, said, 'Across the Stafford Collection we've ended up with sites in both tier 2 and tier 3. Northcote located in the Ribble Valley has been told they cannot open which goes beyond frustrating.

'We've invested tens of thousands of pounds in PPE, thermo-cameras and generally making the venue Covid safe. Why are you able to get your hair cut in that same area but not visit arguable some of the safest spaces? It's frustrating.

'Fortunately, we've got an excellent at home box which Lisa and the team have developed to keep them busy but it's not the same as welcoming customers through the door. Then looking at London, we have The Stafford and Norma in tier 2. I'm of course delighted that we can open again and will be doing so on the 2 December, but the restrictions will continue to cause issues.

'Still no mixing of households indoors and a maximum table of six seems crazy when thousands of people are now allowed to attend a sporting event together. Of course, we keep soldiering on but there's only so long we can keep going like this.'

Alasdair Elwick - General Manager Forest Side, Grasmere, commented, 'Firstly it’s a great relief that we can open the properties as planned. As throughout the whole process we will be following Government guidelines closely in our already Covid secure environment.

'However, I do question some of the new guidance: serving alcohol only to guests eating a substantial meal? I think it’s hard to justify that at a hotel a guest cannot enjoy a glass of wine in their room, or in an outdoor setting? This is just another blow.

Michael Caines - Chef Patron Lympstone Manor, The Harbourside Refuge & The Cove, noted, 'For some areas it seems a bit unfair, but they have taken into account the capacity of the NHS when making the decision and we need to adhere to it.

'Naturally, I’m delighted to be Tier 1 in Cornwall and Tier 2 in Devon, whilst being incredibly sympathetic towards those placed into Tier 3. Hopefully we can all pull together to ensure things continue to improve.'