Portsmouth Wetherspoon Lord Palmerston pub staff member tests positive for Covid-19

The worker from The Lord Palmerston, in Palmerston Road, Southsea tested positive this week, resulting in a number of staff having to self-isolate.

The employee notified the company of having tested positive on Monday, despite not showing symptoms.

JD Wetherspoon has notified Public Health England of the positive test result but said it has ‘not been the advice of the health authorities to close the premises’ under such circumstances.

Staff at the Wetherspoon’s owned Sir Alec Rose, Port Solent, have been left covering shifts at the depleted Lord Palmerston.

But an employee, who asked not to be named, has slammed the conduct of senior management of the company – saying the Covid-19 sufferer would have ‘come into contact with a lot of people’.

They said: ‘We were informed someone had tested positive for Covid-19 and they were taking steps to cover the shifts of those self-isolating.

‘We don’t know how many customers the member of staff has served but the chances are they came into contact with a lot of people.’

They added: ‘It is only right the public know about this.’

J.D. Wetherspoon chairman Tim Martin last month criticised a scientist who said the virus could spread in pubs.

Mr Martin said ‘there appears not to have been, up until now, a case of transmission from person to person among staff or from staff to customers or vice versa’. He said there had been isolated cases but no outbreak in some of his 870 pubs.

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Asked about the Lord Palmerston, a spokesman for Wetherspoon told The News: ‘An employee notified us of having tested positive for Covid-19 despite not showing symptoms.

‘As a precaution, in accordance with public health guidelines, a number of staff who may have come into close contact with the affected employee have been asked to self-isolate for 14 days.

‘Close contact means being within two metres of a person who tested positive for the virus for 15 minutes or more or within one meter for one minute or more.

‘All further action shall be taken in consultation with the relevant authorities and the company shall fully cooperate with their enquiries.

‘In these circumstances, it has not been the advice of the health authorities to close the premises.’

It was also confirmed a team of employees from other Wetherspoon pubs in the area will be ‘asked to assist with running the pub in the interim period’.

The spokesman also said Wetherspoon had issued ‘comprehensive social distancing and hygiene practices in all its pubs’ including reduced capacity levels, spacing out of tables and installation of a number of floor screens between tables.

Till-surround screens to the bar had also been introduced and numerous hand sanitiser stations installed.

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