Essex County Council has pledged the county will emerge from the second national lockdown in Tier 1, the lowest level of coronavirus restrictions.
Essex was placed in Tier 2 – 'high' alert – by the Government in October.
The move followed calls from the county council and other political leaders for Essex to be upgraded amid soaring Covid-19 infection rates.
Cllr David Finch, leader of Essex County Council, said: “In order to come out of lockdown at the earliest opportunity, we need to remind residents that compliance with the new arrangements from this Thursday is absolutely key. We all need to play our part, and if we do, we believe that the extra restrictions we will be living under will do their job, and that the infection rate will have fallen sufficiently for us to exit lockdown.
“Because we had entered Tier 2 restrictions earlier in Essex in order to limit the increase in the infection rate, we are confident that when England exits the lockdown, the County will be well placed to recommend to government that we go into the lowest level of restrictions.
“In the meantime we will continue to consult with the business community in terms of what financial help and support will work best for them."
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