ICE WITH THAT?
IT’S SNOWING, IT’S FREEZING... BUT NOTHING CAN PUT THE BRITISH OFF THEIR PUBS
WINTRY showers didn’t stop a different kind of deluge yesterday – as people keen to escape lockdown descended on newly reopened businesses.
Queues formed on high streets across England as its shops and hairdressers opened for the first time in months.
And determined diners and drinkers shivered in pub gardens in defiance of the cold, rain and even snow.
Under the latest easing of virus rules in England, all non-essential retail, gyms, leisure centres and personal care premises, such as barbers and nail salons, were allowed to reopen – along with public buildings such as libraries and outdoor attractions including zoos.
Hospitality venues were also toasting the changes as customers can now be served outdoors in groups of two households or up to six people. Limits on wedding numbers also rose to 15.
In Birmingham, hundreds of early-morning shoppers formed a long line outside Primark – while similar scenes were witnessed outside JD Sports in central London’s Oxford Street.
Police had to be called to the Arndale shopping centre in Manchester when scuffles broke out among a scrum of shoppers queuing outside its main Market Street entrance. In Coventry, a pub was under investigation by council officials after more than 100 people were seen lining up outside for its midnight opening.
Images of The Oak Inn’s garden appeared to show people well spaced out – but some said social distancing did not seem to be enforced in the queue outside.
Owner Darren Lee said the venue had worked within the rules and had filled up within half an hour of opening – forcing him to turn hundreds of people away. ‘No one was expecting that level of demand on a Sunday night,’ he added. ‘We had 64 tables outside and we let 260 people in before we had to say to people in the queue there wasn’t room.’
Meanwhile in Wales, non-essential retail and personal care businesses were also allowed to reopen yesterday – but outdoor hospitality will not be permitted until April 26.
The Scottish government is also expected to begin the reopening of hospitality at the end of this month, although some firms have called for the timetable to be brought forward.
Nearly 80,000 pubs, restaurants and cafes, plus more than 400,000 shops, are now eligible to reopen under the relaxation of rules, according to data compiled by Altus Group.
Footfall across the UK’s retail destinations had risen 146 per cent by 5pm yesterday compared to the same time a week ago, according to figures from Springboard – with shopping centres 217 per cent busier and high streets 174 per cent more crowded.
Compared to last April, at the height of lockdown, crowds were up 481.5 per cent.
However, across all destinations footfall was still down 16 per cent compared to pre-pandemic April 2019. At least 17,500 retail branches have shut during
lockdowns last year. There are also fears from businesses that some members of the public will be reluctant to go back to their old habits while the virus continues to infect thousands each day.
The British Beer and Pub Association has estimated that 40 per cent of licensed premises currently have the necessary outdoor space to reopen, with many waiting until May 17 – when limited indoor dining and drinking is expected to be allowed to resume.
All the changes are still subject to measures such as social distancing and mask wearing, as around half the nation remains unvaccinated against Covid. But the loosening of rules has followed a plunge in cases and deaths across the UK. Yesterday the NHS reported 3,568 new coronavirus cases and 13 deaths – a 50 per cent drop on the week before. Meanwhile, government data up to April 10 shows more than 7.6million Brits have now been fully vaccinated.
Out of 39,846,781 jabs given across the country so far, some 32,190,576 have been first doses, and 7,656,205 were second doses.