MP Bob Seely said: “I am grateful that the Government has listened to arguments put forward by myself and others that first, the Island should be treated as an island, and second, that we should be in the lowest tier.
“This is a sensible approach and a recognition of the fact that not only do we have relatively low infection rates on the Island, but our separation by sea from the mainland acts as a natural barrier to the spread of the virus.
“Island businesses have suffered as a result of the second lockdown. I hope that those that have been forced to close will now reopen and I hope that for those Islanders now doing their Christmas shopping, we will do our best to support local Island-owned businesses.
“I spoke with officials last night about the roll out of the vaccine on the Isle of Wight, which should start within a month. I hope that this will mark the beginning of the end of the pandemic and we can look forward to Easter with optimism.
“I want to thank again the NHS and care home staff for their vital work over the last few months, and the Council for their work.
"It is clear that there are significant lessons to learn over how we have tackled the coronavirus pandemic, and how Government functions. For now, I am satisfied that we have been placed in tier one and that the Government has listened to us. I am also hopeful that with the vaccines, there is light at the end of the tunnel in what has been a frankly wretched year.”