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The masks will be mandatory for bar staff, shop workers, waiters and taxi drivers in an effort to combat the surge in coronavirus cases in England, the prime minister announced.
Fines for not wearing a mask will increase to £ 200 and will be extended to customers when they are not seated at a table. Boris johnson said to the deputies.
Watch and follow live on Sky News as Boris Johnson hosts a Downing Street broadcast at 8pm
Announcing the new coronavirus restrictions, the prime minister said the UK had reached a “dangerous tipping point” in its fight against COVID-19 and it must “act now to avoid even more serious consequences in the future.”
He also warned that the measures could remain in place for up to six months, stating: “At the moment, this virus is a fact of our lives.”
The restrictions announced by the PM are as follows:
- Office workers should return to work from home whenever possible, although workers in “key utilities and in all professions where it is not possible to work from home”, such as construction and retail, should continue to go
- Starting Thursday, all pubs, bars and restaurants must have table service and close at 22:00, but delivery services may remain open.
- The requirement to cover the face has been extended to retail personnel, people in taxis and everyone who uses hospitality services.
- Fines for not covering your face will now double to £ 200 for the first offense
- Now only 15 people can attend weddings, but 30 can go to a funeral
- The rule of six has been extended to indoor sports teams
- The gradual reopening of stadiums for sports clubs was canceled
The prime minister has stopped in his tracks, for now, in introducing more comprehensive measures to try and stem the rise in cases.
He acknowledged this in his Commons speech, telling MPs: “I want to emphasize that this is in no way a return to the March total lockdown. We are not issuing a blanket instruction to stay home.
“We will ensure that schools, colleges and universities remain open because nothing is more important than the education, health and well-being of our youth.
“We will ensure that businesses can remain open in a COVID-compliant manner. However, we must take steps to suppress the disease.”
It had been suggested that the proposals Downing Street was working on could have caused essential travel to schools and workplaces to continue, with the closure of restaurants and bars.
It was also speculated that Number 10 would prohibit mixing of different households.
Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer said that while his party supported the latest measures, the public will be concerned that the government “does not have a strategy.”
“One day people were encouraged to work in the office, in fact more than encouraged, the prime minister openly challenged them for not doing it, today they are told otherwise.
“This is a time of national crisis, but we need clear leadership.”
Responding to questions from MPs after his statement, Johnson confirmed that they would have a chance to discuss the new measures next week.
The decentralized administrations of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland can take their own action in the fight against the coronavirus.
Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon will announce further restrictions shortly, while the people of Northern Ireland have already been forbidden to mix with other homes indoors.
In Wales, around a third of the population is currently under a form of local blockade.
Johnson will address the nation from Downing Street later on the new restrictions and the UK’s fight against the virus.
It comes after the alert level was raised from three to four, which means there is now a high or increasing level of transmission.
The government’s top scientific adviser warned that the UK could see 49,000 new cases every day within weeks, unless steps are taken to reduce the infection rate.
This would translate to “more than 200 deaths a day” by mid-November, Sir Patrick Vallance said.
Johnson has said he does not want to put the country in a second national lockdown and hopes the latest measures will be enough to turn the tide.
But even though there is no national lockdown like the one seen in March, around 13.5 million people across the UK are currently living under some form of local restrictions.
