Brits take to Twitter to declare they are #notgoingout for NYE

Britons are taking to Twitter to declare they are #notgoingout tonight for New Year's Eve as the country remains gripped by Omicron panic.

Dozens of people are sharing their low-key plans on social media, including watching Jools Holland, eating homemade pizza, drinking a mug of cocoa and having cheese and crackers.

It comes as nightclubs in England, which are still allowed to open unlike neighbouring Scotland and Wales, have offered half-price deals in a bid to encourage revellers to ring in the new year with them tonight.

Writing on Twitter tonight, Simon Fellowes posted: 'Lamb chops, new pots, steamed spinach, home made salsa verde. Dolcelatte and crackers. Bottle of South African Pinot Grigio. #notgoingout #HappyNewYear'

And another Twitter user called Becky wrote: '#notgoingout Takeaway ordered, gin on ice, Jools Holland on the TV later (I'll be asleep by 9).

One Twitter user, John Green, shared an image of his New Year's Eve dinner.

He showed a plate of pizza and chips and ended his post with a laughing emoji.

The post was captioned: 'Rock n roll New Years Eve 2021 - gin & tonics, pizza & chips with Prosecco for later. #notgoingout #bringin2022 #HAPPYNEWYEAR.'

Referring to the latest phase of the pandemic, Cangusme wrote tonight: 'Super content and happy to be #notgoingout' #ToryCovidCatastrophe.'

Earlier Adele Louise Rodgers said: 'I'm staying home, and I will be glamming up! Why not'.

Paul Slatter said: 'I was thinking of going to Scotland to avoid New Year this year. But, I guess I'll stay put with a candle and a mug of coca and have my own version of Scotland at home... #NotGoingOut'.

This morning, people in Manchester told BBC Radio Four's Today programme this morning that they had concerns over going out.

One said: 'There's a plan in place that some friends might be meeting up in a local pub. I'm a little dubious as to whether I want to, so I'm more likely to spend it at home, to be honest.'

Another added: 'We have been invited to a house party with a few neighbours. We haven't quite decided yet but it's something we're thinking about.'

A third said: 'I'm spending it with a couple of friends, we'll probably get a takeaway, that sort of thing. I'm certainly not going into town.'

Nightclub owner Alex Proud earlier said mixed messaging from the government over end of year celebrations had created 'a really dire situation' for the industry.

Alex Proud, who runs Proud Embankment in Brighton, told Sky News: 'There's hardly any staff here today, we're not sold out tonight and that story is the same across the country.

'Venues that are normally sold out two weeks in advance are half sold out, and we are screaming in pain.

'Bookings are massively down. In my venue in Brighton we're doing a half price sale now, and that's unheard of in any venue.

'Your local pub doesn't do a sale on New Year's Eve. It's disastrously bad.'

With venues forced to close in other areas of the UK, Scottish and Welsh revellers arrived in England this afternoon and evening ahead of hitting the town later.

Work and Pensions Minister Chloe Smith yesterday said people are 'more than free to move around' the UK over the New Year.

Asked if it would be wrong for people from Scotland to travel across the border into England to celebrate the New Year, Ms Smith told BBC Radio 4's World At One programme: 'Well, I think perhaps I should just add the obvious constitutional point here, which is that we are one country and people are more than free to move around inside our country under the general law, obviously.'

From December 15, Covid passes for entry into nightclubs and other venues have been in place, and this also applies to indoor events with 500 or more people, where they are likely to stand or move around, such as in music venues.

Meanwhile, Waitrose has seen a surge in people searching for recipes online, suggesting middle class families are planning to stay in for dinner at home rather than going out.

The supermarket chain says searches for 'New Year's Eve recipes' are 160 per cent higher on its website than 12 months ago, while four times as many people are looking for 'dinner party recipes', compared to this time last year.

Will Torrent, of Waitrose, told the Times: 'It's clear our customers are hosting intimate dinner parties for New Year's Eve this year and findings show that just over a third of shoppers are treating themselves and their guests to high-end, quality products and specialty ingredients.

'We're seeing people upgrading their menus to kick off 2022.'

Jools Holland's Annual Hootenanny is once again expected to be widely viewed on BBC Two tonight in a packed TV schedule.

Popular soaps EastEnders, Emmerdale and Coronation Street all have episodes this evening, there is a special of Channel 4's The Last Leg, while BBC One marks the end of the 2021 with 'The Big New Years & Years Eve Party with Kylie and Pet Shop Boys'.