Nottinghamshire will be placed under tier 3 coronavirus measures from Friday, it was confirmed on Wednesday night, with a series of extra rules including England’s first virus-related ban on off-licence alcohol sales after 9pm. West Yorkshire is set to follow suit within days – meaning more than 11 million people in England will soon be under the toughest level of restrictions. Ministers have told leaders in both regions they want to impose the strictest lockdown rules due to growing concern over hospital admissions and rising cases in the over-60s. In Nottinghamshire, on top of the off-licence restriction, pubs, bars, beauty salons, tanning shops, nail bars and tattoo parlours will have to close from Friday. Hairdressers and gyms will stay open. The alcohol restriction was proposed by local police, keen to stop street disorder and Covid spreading at house parties, according to one person involved in negotiations. The government said alcohol can continue to be purchased in hospitality venues when accompanying a substantial meal, up until 10pm. Jason Zadrozny, the leader of Ashfield district council, said the closure of “personal care” establishments – excluding hairdressers and barber shops – had been on the insistence of Public Health England and meant the county was “effectively in tier 3 plus”. No other tier 3 areas – which include Greater Manchester and the Liverpool and Sheffield city regions – include off-licence restrictions, suggesting the tiering system is not a one-size-fits-all model. In Nottinghamshire, infection rates are among the highest in the country and continue to rise rapidly. The weekly case rate stands at 364 people per 100,000 in Nottinghamshire county, and is 239 per 100,000 in those over 60, rising to 772 per 100,000 in those aged 17 to 21 years old. In Nottingham city the current weekly case rate per 100,000 rises to 493 per 100,000, with 918 per 100,000 aged between 17 to 21. As of 20 October, there were 194 confirmed Covid-19 cases at Nottingham University Hospitals Trust, with 11 mechanical ventilation beds occupied by confirmed Covid-19 patients. Though a deal has not yet been struck with government, West Yorkshire is expected to follow Nottinghamshire into tier 3 within days. That means 11.1 million people – one in five of England’s population – will be subject to the strictest lockdown curbs in Lancashire, Greater Manchester, Nottinghamshire, Warrington and the Liverpool and Sheffield city regions. In a statement on Wednesday night, West Yorkshire’s leaders said discussions were ongoing to “discuss steps for controlling the rising Covid-19 infection rates across the region and a package of measures to support the West Yorkshire economy should it be necessary to move into tier 3 (very high) restrictions”. But they insisted a deal had not yet been agreed and that talks would continue on Thursday. Susan Hinchcliffe, the leader of Bradford Council, said discussions about West Yorkshire were ongoing but it appeared the government was “unflinching in their resolve” to place the region into tier 3. She said it was unclear what support would be offered to businesses in the event of a move to the higher tier but the government had told council leaders it would be a “template package” with no room for negotiation – although ministers had promised to clarify the support package in a further meeting. Another senior regional figure said “it’s a question of when rather than if” tier 3 was imposed on West Yorkshire. It is understood that leaders are considering a “vanilla tier 3”, meaning pubs and bars not serving meals would close but everything else would stay open. Zulfi Karim, the president of Council for Mosques, Bradford, who also sits on the Bradford outbreak control board, said discussions were ongoing and that there was a gold command meeting in Bradford at 4pm on Wednesday. “As people of Bradford we think it should happen. I think we should go for lockdown quickly. I’ve been calling for that for a week now,” he said, complaining that “political shenanigans” seemed to be slowing the process. Bradford Royal Infirmary was “under a lot of pressure,” he added.