Retailers in London's West End were operating their last few hours of trading last night after the government's decision to raise the capital's status to Tier 4 at midnight (December 19).

During the final weekend before Christmas, this should have been retailers' busiest time of year.

Instead, there were scenes of half-empty shops in Regent Street and other stores were desperately trying to recoup revenue lost earlier during the year during lockdown by offering larger discounts.

It deals a bitter blow to struggling firms, as the British Retail Consortium says Tier 4 could result in thousands of redundancies if the government does not step in with support.

Under the new Tier 4 restrictions, non-essential shops must close, along with gyms and hairdressers.

Retailers in London's West End were operating their last few hours of trading after the government's decision to raise the capital's status to Tier 4 at midnight (Dec 19).

During the final weekend before Christmas, this should have been retailers' busiest time of year.

Instead, there were scenes of half-empty shops in Regent Street and other stores were desperately trying to recoup revenue lost earlier during the year during lockdown by offering larger discounts.

It deals a bitter blow to struggling firms, as the British Retail Consortium says Tier 4 could result in thousands of redundancies if the government does not step in with support.

Under the new Tier 4 restrictions, non-essential shops must close, along with gyms and hairdressers.