Positive news this week that the current lockdown will end on December 2nd, as the Prime Minister confirmed in his statement to MPs in the House of Commons on Monday. This will be replaced by the regional, tiered system in place before this month, although with a few changes to the previous rules. Importantly for businesses across Mid Sussex, non-essential retail will be able to stay open across all tiers, gyms and grassroots sport can resume, spectator sports can resume with limited capacities, while pleasingly, the 10pm closing time has been modified to last orders at 10pm and closing time at 11pm. I hope everyone takes the opportunity, with Christmas coming up, to shop for presents in our brilliant, independent shops across Mid Sussex, who have not been able to trade over the course of November. As we come up the festivities, which we are all in need of - we all need to find the right balance between doing our bit to support our local businesses, whilst not taking unnecessary risks.
The rollout of Covid vaccinations are on their way, as soon as they have been found to be safe and effective. I was delighted to see the recent announcements concerning the success of vaccine trials, particularly following the announcement about the effectiveness of the UK-based, and Government backed, Oxford-AstraZeneca Vaccine. We have secured access to 355 million vaccine doses already. I know how pleased everyone will be at this news, but we must remember we aren't out of the woods yet and we still face a difficult winter ahead, where need to continue following the measures and guidelines for the different tiers. Looking towards the long-term, we can all be very optimistic and I commend all those who have worked so hard to develop these vaccines and those who have been part of the important trials.
In more good news, over the weekend a significant rollover trade deal was secured between the UK and Canada, with an arrangement reached to commence more advanced trading negotiations next year. This agreement, which reflects current EU-Canada trading arrangements, is the first step towards cementing an ambitious and mutually beneficia new trade deal, which will bring many advantages to the UK economy as we venture onto the global stage as an independent nation making our own trade decisions. For our Mid Sussex businesses who trade internationally, or who are planning to, this means major new and expanded business opportunities with a close, international friend and ally. As we emerge from COVID and start to trade globally as a nation outside of the EU, I encourage businesses based in Mid Sussex to explore exciting new horizons in their business recovery planning.