Restrictions around Greater Manchester will be extended to the Lancashire city from midnight, meaning different households will not be able to meet indoors or in gardens.

Measures banning mixing between households in the north of England were due for review on Thursday, a week after they were brought in for residents in Greater Manchester, parts of east Lancashire and West Yorkshire, as well as Leicester, the first area to be hit by a local lockdown. Those restrictions will remain in place, with another review due next week, ahead of an announcement on Friday, August 14.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said Preston had been added at the request of the local authority and explained: ‘The past week has been difficult for many people in Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and east Lancashire, and I thank everyone in these areas for their patience and willingness to follow the rules.

‘Unfortunately the data does not yet show a decrease in the transmission of this terrible virus. It means we must keep the current restrictions in place to allow more time for the impact of this ban on indoor gatherings to be felt, and make sure local residents and their loved ones are protected.’

The new restrictions for Preston follow it being designated an ‘area of intervention’ by the Government following a spike in cases. The city council has suggested coronavirus cases are hitting the under 30s.

Council chief executive Adrian Phillips said it was a ‘city-wide’ issue despite there being certain areas having more cases than others, adding: ‘The number of cases in Preston have increased rapidly in recent days leading to Government categorising the city as an area of intervention. It is also alarming to see that the under-30s are contracting it at a significant rate.

‘It is clear that coronavirus is still here and we all need to work together to keep ourselves, our friends, families and communities safe from this virus.’

The new restrictions for Preston follow it being designated an ‘area of intervention’ by the Government following a spike in cases.

Social bubbles are exempt from the restrictions, and residents can meet in groups of up to six – or more than six if exclusively from two households – in outdoor areas such as parks and beer gardens. Households can also visit indoor hospitality venues, so long as they do not mix with others.

Today’s move came after officials in Preston pre-empted the announcement this morning, warning that it could become the latest area to face a local lockdown amid rising infection rates, with 47 new cases in the past week.

The Lancashire Resilience Forum said: ‘Since the rise of cases was first announced last week, residents, communities and businesses have been asked to take extra precautions to reduce the spread of the virus.

‘These extra precautions are now mandatory and residents are still actively encouraged to get tested at the regional testing site based at Preston’s College if they are experiencing any symptoms of coronavirus.’

Dr Sakthi Karunanithi, the director of public health at Lancashire County Council, said the city had taken action ahead of the announcement.

He told BBC Breakfast: ‘We’re not waiting for others to tell us what to do here in Preston, we’ve already activated our plans, making more tests available and asking people to avoid social contacts.’

Dr Karunanithi said contacts of people with coronavirus symptoms were being encouraged to come for tests even though they may not have symptoms ‘so that we can find the virus that is hiding in close contacts and stop the transmission’.

The rolling seven-day rate of new cases of Covid-19 in Preston has risen from 20.3 cases per 100,000 people in the seven days to July 27 to 32.8 in the seven days to August 3. A total of 47 new cases have been recorded.

In Blackburn with Darwen, the rate has fallen from 88.8 cases per 100,000 people to 82.2, with 123 new cases. Oldham is in second place, where the seven-day rate has jumped from 55.7 to 67.9, with 161 new cases, while Pendle is third, where the rate has risen from 46.7 to 58.6, with 54 new cases.

The rate in Leicester continues to fall, down from 62.4 to 52.2, with 185 new cases.

In Greater Manchester, Mayor Andy Burnham has said restrictions are not due to be lifted until at least next week, the Manchester Evening News reported.

Meanwhile, the Government hinted this morning that France could be the latest country hit by quarantine rules for arrivals into the UK.

Last night Andorra, Belgium and the Bahamas were added to the list, which also includes Spain, Luxembourg and Serbia.