Commons Sense

I was over the moon to see the smooth reopening of so many of our hospitality businesses last weekend.

It was a great pleasure for me to be out and about once again to witness pubs, cafes, and restaurants ready, willing and able to serve customers safely across the Windsor constituency.

Many of our local businesses have been through tough times over the past few months, and their resilience has been nothing short of extraordinar y.

Just as we had a duty to stay home to protect our NHS and frontline workers, in many ways I feel we now have a duty to go out and protect people’s livelihoods if we can safely afford to do so.

By going out to the local pub, restaurant, café, or hairdresser you are not just supporting business owners, but you are also supporting the livelihoods of their employees, contractors, part-time staff, trainees and those of their suppliers.

To stop the rapid spread of the virus it was right that the Government stepped in to support workers through the generous furlough and self-employed schemes.

It is also right that we now implement measures to encourage businesses to safely re-open their doors so that our economy can get going again to protect the jobs and livelihoods of millions of people across the countr y.

Throughout this entire crisis the Government has aimed to strike a balance between prioritising public health and maintaining normal life. The risks are falling and I am therefore pleased to see to see our country get going as fast as it is safe to do so.

Whilst I will be actively encouraging constituents to get out and support local businesses and to reunite with loved ones, I must stress that we all have a duty to act responsibly.

Whether you’re a business owner or a customer, we must do our best to respect the rules.

This complex transitional period is going to be tricky to police and enforce.

Anyone who tries to bend the rules in their favour will needlessly put themselves and others at risk of causing local outbreaks unnecessarily.

The Government has been clear that it not hesitate to impose lockdowns on local authorities should infections begin to rise again.

So please stay alert, act responsibly, and enjoy your summer sensibly.