Cornwall Council is urging residents to follow the government guidance following Monday evening’s announcement of a new lockdown in response to rising Covid-19 infection rates.

The announcement follows a dramatic surge in the number of cases across the country in recent weeks.

Read here: Cornwall and England to go into lockdown: schools to close, shielding begins

All residents are being urged to stay at home wherever possible, and those clinically vulnerable people who were asked to shield last spring should do so again.

Read next: Explained: What you can and can't do in national lockdown 3

Cornwall Council had already called for tighter restrictions to be implemented to help protect residents and local health services.

Cllr Julian German, leader of Cornwall Council, said: “We will continue to support residents and businesses as we enter another lockdown.

“This action should have been taken as soon as the surge in case numbers became evident. My hope now is that these steps will prove enough to make a real difference and reduce the spread of the virus.

“We will now assess the details of tonight’s announcement, and make sure we are ready to support to our residents, especially those shielding, and our local businesses in the way we have been since the first lockdown started back last March.”