End of lockdown: drunk, naked, angry

BRITISH police said yesterday revelers who packed London’s Soho district the night pubs finally reopened made it “crystal clear” that drunk people are not able to obey social distancing rules.

England’s hospitality sector turned back to life after a threemonth coronavirus lockdown on what the media dubbed as either “Super Saturday” or “Independence Day.” Pubs and restaurants were allowed to start seating clients and barbers could get their clippers out for the first time since March.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson faced queries about why he decided to schedule the grand reopening for a Saturday instead of a potentially less chaotic Monday.

Johnson said on Friday that it would not have made much of a difference either way. But the head of Britain’s police federation said he ended up dealing with “naked men, happy drunks, angry drunks, fights and more angry drunks” while on shift on Saturday.

“What was crystal clear is that drunk people can’t and won’t socially distance,” John Apter told London radio.

He said his own police department in the southern city of Southampton “managed to cope.”

“I know other areas have had issues with officers being assaulted,” Apter said.

A scan of police reports from Saturday night showed a similar level of mischief-making across England.

Officers in the southwestern

Devon and Cornwall region had logged up nearly 1,000 reports of “drink-related disorder and anti-social behavior” by late Saturday.

There were also reports of illegal raves in London and the northeast that resulted in mass arrests as well as disorder in the north Midlands.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock defended the government’s decision-making and played down any immediate safety concerns.

(AFP)