Lockdown to continue until at least early March

The Prime Minister this afternoon stated that lockdown will remain in effect until early March at the earliest.

He told the House of Commons that schools would be the first part of society to reopen, and that they would not do so until “at least” March 8. 

Other activities in the economy will remain under the current restrictions until at least that time; when they reopen they will be "gradual and phased."

In the week beginning February 22 there will be a routemap out of restrictions published by the government, but with no changes to current lockdown being implemented until March 8 or later.

Earlier today the current third national lockdown - which we now know will last another six weeks at least - was described by Zoopla as creating a ‘perfect storm’ for the property market.

Even though the housing market remains formally open and agents are still allowed to work, record Covid cases and calls to uphold social distancing have made some would-be home sellers reluctant to take the plunge, according to Zoopla. 

It says that in the first weeks of 2021, coinciding with the start of the current lockdown, the flow of new homes coming to the market for sale was 12 per cent lower than 12 months earlier.

And Zoopla adds that only falling Covid case numbers and the easing of lockdown restrictions, or a return to the tier system, would unleash pent-up supply in the spring or beyond.