Lincolnshire Police will tackle only "extreme breaches" of COVID-19 restrictions amid the tier 4 threat and coronavirus mutation.

Chris Haward, the new Chief Constable for Lincolnshire Police said the force "will only really be enforcing those extreme breaches where people are flagrantly breaking the rules and the guidance."

This comes as at least two samples of a new, more infectious, variant of coronavirus have been taken in Lincolnshire, according to a new study.

The force will continue to follow the four E's: engage, explain, encourage and enforce in dealing with the challenges of coronavirus, but will take a firm stance if needed.

There was only one exceptional case in Lincoln where a student was fined £10,000 for hosting a party with up to 100 people in early December,

Meanwhile, 60% (142 out of 237) of the COVID fines from Lincolnshire Police went unpaid within 28 days between March 27 and September 21.

Chief Constable Haward reiterated the pandemic is "everyone's responsibility".

He added: "I think this is about community spirit. It's about community confidence, and it's about community cooperation."

He added: "What I see across Lincolnshire so far has been exceptional. I think the vast majority of the population have abided by those rules, and whether we move from tier 3 to tier 4 or the other way, we need to keep doing that.

"Because fundamentally, this is about keeping people safe, protecting the most vulnerable in society, making sure that our families, friends and loved ones are safe until we're all through this and the vaccines are out, and we know that we can go about our business safely.

"Let's get through COVID safely as a community working together."