Boris Johnson: Shops and gyms to reopen in England but pubs face strict rules

UK prime minister Boris Johnson has announced retailers and leisure facilities in England will be able to resume trading next week, but pubs, bars, cafes and restaurants will see only a partial easing of restrictions.

The prime minister confirmed England’s lockdown will lift as planned on 2 December, and the country will return to a three-tier regional system with the strictest lockdowns only in virus hotspots.

Johnson told the Commons on Monday that shops, personal care, gyms, and the leisure sector could reopen, while outdoor sports, weddings, collective worship and leaving home “for any purpose” will be allowed once more.

Spectator sports and business events will be free to resume indoors and outdoors with capacity limits in Tier 1 and Tier 2 areas with lower restrictions. A time-limited Christmas “dispensation” allowing families to gather will be developed for the whole of the UK.

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Social gatherings will only be allowed outside and for up to six people, while the government is continuing to urge those who can work from home to continue to do so.

Restrictions on hospitality firms will also be tighter than under the previous regional lockdown rules, with business leaders claiming they will “ruin” Christmas for venues and customers.

Venues in Tier 2 areas will only be allowed to serve alcohol alongside meals and Tier 3 areas only allowed to offer takeaways. A previous 10pm curfew will be extended to allow last orders at 10pm and closure at 11pm, however.

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Decisions on each area’s tier will not be confirmed until Thursday, but Johnson said more regions would “at least temporarily” be in higher tiers than previously.

The end of a shutdown for non-essential retail is likely to be a significant relief for firms hamstrung by curbs over the past month in the crucial pre-Christmas trading period. Traders from clothing stores to betting shops, tailors to market stalls have been forced to shut throughout November, with the British Retail Consortium (BRC) estimating the curbs have cost £2bn (£1.5bn) a week.

But the limited reopening in hospitality sparked anger among business leaders in the sector, with Johnson apologising for “unavoidable hardship” but warning the previous system had not done enough to curb infection rates.

Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality, welcomed the changes but warned: “This is effectively a lockdown for businesses in Tier 3 and further purgatory for those facing even tighter restrictions in Tier 2.”

More than 19,000 pubs were in Tier 2 and 3 areas prior to England’s lockdown, including according to Altus Group data reported by PA. Previous Tier 2 and 3 areas included parts of north-west England, north-east England, Yorkshire and the Humber, Essex, and London.

Nicholls said restrictions on household mixing were the “real challenge” for the industry, from hotels to clubs. “Rather than saving Christmas, these damaging measures will ruin it for hospitality businesses and their customers.”

The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) also hit out at further restrictions, calling them a “kick in the teeth” for publicans who have invested in COVID-19 precautions.

Johnson said he hoped vaccine advances by the spring would “make the whole concept of COVID lockdown redundant,” but warned measures were still needed to contain the virus for now.

Adam General, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said it was "helpful" firms had been given notice ahead of the rule changes, but said they needed more support, mass testing and a plan to get the economy fully open. "Ministers can’t simply keep switching businesses on and off like a light switch without expecting severe consequences," he warned.

Mike Cherry, national chair of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), said many small firms would be "anxious" about which tier they fall in, but also "breathing a sigh of relief" at being allowed to resume trading. "For the small business sector, Christmas shopping can finally begin," he said.

Meanwhile the Institute of Directors' policy director Roger Barker called the announcements a "decidedly mixed bag," with hospitality firms and their suppliers likely to be left "reeling."

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