There are no current plans to close down pubs, bars and restaurants and order people off the streets, a government minister has said.
Housing secretary said in a radio interview that there are no plans to close down the hospitality sector, despite England’s Chief Medical Officer warning that they may have to close so schools can restart in September.
He added that schools would definitely return to full capacity in September and confirmed it would be the priority should there be a second spike of infections.
The government’s chief medical officer Chris Whitty warned earlier this week that the country had ‘probably reached near the limit or the limits’ of what can be done to return to life as normal for now, and suggested “trade-offs” would have to be made if schools are to reopen in September, with some restrictions being reimposed.
Regarding the proposal of any fresh restrictions Mr Jenrick added: “We don’t want to do anything that is a blanket approach across the country.
“Our strategy is to manage this in a localised way with targeted action as we’ve done in Leicester, as we’re doing now in the north-west.
“We will follow the data and look at options if we have to but that approach is the way we restrict in certain areas – it is difficult for those who live there but it provides greater freedom for the rest of the country, for businesses to reopen and for people to get on with their daily lives, and that has to be the way forward if we can.”
A report by the Centre for Economics and Business Research has revealed that London alone has seen revenue fall in the hospitality sector by £2.3 billion between the months of March and June.
