TOUGHER restrictions to deal with the coronavirus crisis could be on the way in the next few weeks, Boris Johnson has signalled.

The Prime Minister said he was “fully reconciled” to a probable tightening of the anti-Covid measures.

Mr Johnson said the tiering system was already “very tough” and would likely need tightening.

The Prime Minister told BBC1’s Andrew Marr Show: “It may be that we need to do things in the next few weeks that will be tougher in many parts of the country.

“I’m fully, fully reconciled to that.

“There are obviously a range of tougher measures that that we would have to consider.

“I’m not going to speculate now about what they would be, but I’m sure that all our viewers and our listeners will understand what the sort of things… clearly school closures, which we had to do in March is one of those things.”

READ>Boris Johnson insists schools are safe and primary children should return

St Helens Star:

Boris Johnson (PA)

In St Helens and the wider Liverpool City Region - where the rate of infection is rising - Tier 3 restrictions have been in place since New Year's Eve and a further review of the measures in England is due next week.

Some think that it is too long to wait, with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer saying a new national lockdown should be declared within the next 24 hours, because coronavirus is out of control.

Mr Johnson, meanwhile, said a mass vaccine programme was the way out of the tiering system.

He said: “What we are doing now is using the tiering system, which is a very tough system… and, alas, probably about to get tougher to keep things under control.

“But, we will review it.”

He added: “And we have the prospect of vaccines coming down the track in their tens of millions.

“And that, I think, is something that should keep people going in what I predicted, back on your show in in October, will be a very bumpy period right now.

“It is bumpy and it’s going to be bumpy.”

The comments came as another national lockdown was called for by Liverpool’s council leaders to deal with a new strain of Covid-19 and prevent a “catastrophe”.

The city’s acting mayor, Councillor Wendy Simon, and the Labour-run city council’s cabinet said “urgent action” was required due to the rate of the rise in coronavirus infections.

The new strain of Covid-19 transmits faster and is most prevalent in London and the South East, where hospitals have become stretched.

And Professor Sir Mark Walport, who is a member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), said it was “pretty clear” tougher restrictions were needed.

Asked if Tier 4 measures were enough, the former chief scientific adviser said: “It’s the Tier 4 restrictions, it’s obeying them.

“It is thinking about breaking essentially every possible route of transmission we possibly can.

“Those are the things that are absolutely necessary and it is pretty clear we’re going to need more.”

St Helens Star:

Sir Keir Starmer (PA) wants a national lockdown

Meanwhile, Sir Keir says a new national lockdown should be declared within the next 24 hours, because coronavirus is out of control.

Accusing Mr Johnson of presiding over “chaos”, the leader of the opposition insisted it was “inevitable” that more schools would need to shut.

Sir Keir told reporters the Prime Minister should not hint at new restrictions within weeks but, instead, act within hours.

His comments came after Mr Johnson signalled that a tougher anti-Covid crackdown would be brought into force in the coming weeks.

The Labour leader said: “The virus is clearly out of control.

“We can’t allow the Prime Minister to use up the next two or three weeks and then bring in a national lockdown which is inevitable.

“Do it now. That’s the necessary first step to get the virus back under control.”

As controversy raged over whether more schools should be shut, Sir Keir said:  “Everybody wants children back in school. There is nobody that would argue with that.

“I don’t want to call for the closure of schools tomorrow morning and add to the chaos, but we do need to recognise that it is inevitable that more schools will close, and we need a plan in place to deal with it.

“But it can only be part of a wider strategy that has a national lockdown in place in the next 24 hours.

“The Prime Minister is hinting at it, but he’s not doing it. We can’t afford that delay again.

“Let’s not have the Prime Minister saying ‘I’m going to do it, but not yet’, that’s the problem he has made so many times.

“Nationwide lockdown – the Prime Minister has hinted that that’s going to happen but he’s delaying again.”