You may have to 'sign in' when you visit pubs once they reopen

PUNTERS visiting pubs once they reopen may have to sign in with their contact details, the health secretary has said.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Matt Hancock has said England is ‘clearly on track’ to further ease the lockdown.

Acknowledging that ‘a lot of the country does need a haircut’, Mr Hancock told Sky's Sophy Ridge on Sunday that he is ‘not going to rule out’ hairdressers and barbers also being able to reopen on July 4.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

He gave perspex screens, masks and altered seating arrangements as examples of measures to mitigate the risk of spreading coronavirus if the two-metre rule is relaxed.

A pint being servedA pint being served
A pint being served
Read More
Chichester Festival Theatre boss warns some theatres might never reopen

And he floated the idea that punters at pubs and bars could have to sign a guest book with their names and contact details so they could be swiftly traced if they come into contact with an infection.

Boris Johnson is set to lay out the next steps in the easing of the coronavirus lockdown on Tuesday.

The Prime Minister and his most senior ministers will on Monday discuss the next steps for the lockdown with chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance and chief medical officer for England Professor Chris Whitty.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Mr Johnson will then on Tuesday outline the plans to Parliament for pubs, restaurants, hotels and hairdressers to reopen in England from July 4, and a likely loosening of the distance rule to aid the restart to the economy.

Guidance will be published for each sector on how businesses can reduce the spread of Covid-19 when they reopen.

And the public are expected to be warned that the newest relaxation of rules will be the first to be reversed if there are widespread breaches that prompt the virus to spread uncontrollably.

A No 10 spokesman said: ‘The reason we are able to move forward this week is because the vast majority of people have taken steps to contain the virus.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

‘The more we open up, the more important it is that everyone follows the social-distancing rules.

‘We will not hesitate to put the handbrake on to stop the virus running out of control.’

A message from the Editor

Thank you for reading this story on portsmouth.co.uk. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to portsmouth.co.uk and enjoy unlimited access to local news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit our Subscription page now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.