Times

The mutated variant of the coronavirus has spread “everywhere”, risking placing more areas into strict Tier 4 restrictions, The Times says.

Britain’s border with France was closed last night with all travellers and lorry drivers blocked from leaving and the EU ready to ban all arrivals to the bloc, The Times reports.

The Times leads on the UK healthcare regulator blocking the prime minister’s plans to post testing kits to people’s homes, claiming they are not reliable enough if people administer them themselves.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock is considering even stricter measures on areas hardest-hit by COVID-19, according to The Times. This could include the closure of non-essential shops if mass testing fails to effectively monitor the most recent wave.

The Times leads with the PM’s warning that the elderly should not spend Christmas with their relatives indoors – even though they’re allowed to by law. Read the full story here.Pet owners will also be able to take their cats and dogs to Europe more easily after Brexit, the paper also reports. You can read more about that here.

The prime minister will urge people to rethink visiting elderly relatives over Christmas, although will not toughen up restrictions over the festive period, writes The Times. 

Eleven million people in London and parts of Essex and Hertfordshire will be placed in Tier 3 from Wednesday – with restaurants and pubs forced to close except for takeaways as Health Secretary Matt Hancock suggested Christmas shoppers avoid the centre of the capital, according to The Times.Get the lowdown on the affected areas here.

Britain and the EU pledging to “go the extra mile” to try to secure a post-Brexit trade deal makes the front of The Times.

The Times leads on Boris Johnson’s EU talks, reporting the prime minister said the cabinet backs his decision to reject “the deal on the table”.

The prime minister is refusing to give up in face of Brexit deadlock – that’s on the front of The Times.