Epping Forest MP Dame Eleanor Laing said: "I know this is the opposite of what we wanted, which was a move back into Tier 2, but the fact is that the Epping Forest district has some of the worst COVID-19 figures in the whole of the country.
"The current situation is bleak.
"People will be terribly disappointed about their plans for Christmas. But we must just do all we can to stop the spread of the new variant of the virus.
"I very much regret that the Prime Minister has had to announce these more stringent measures today.
"We have come so far. Let’s hold our nerve and continue to do all we can to protect the most vulnerable in our community."
