British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a second national lockdown for England, saying “we must act now to control the spread of the virus.”
The BBC reported, “Pubs, restaurants, gyms and non-essential shops will have to close for four weeks from Thursday, he said. But unlike the restrictions in spring, schools, colleges and universities can stay open.
“The prime minister told a Downing Street news conference that he was ‘truly, truly sorry’ for the impact on businesses, but said the furlough system paying 80% of employee wages will be extended through November.”
CNN report, “People will only be able to leave their homes for specific reasons: education, work [if they are unable to work from home], to shop for food, for health reasons, or for exercise and recreation outdoors, either with that person’s household or with one person from another household.
“The government is discouraging all non-essential travel, though people will still be able to travel abroad for work, providing they follow England’s quarantine rules upon their return. The measures will only apply to England, as healthcare is handled by the devolved governments of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.”
Sky News report, “People will be able to travel internationally for work, but will not be allowed to go abroad for holidays.
“Premier League football and other elite sports will be allowed to continue, due to the testing regimes in place for professional sportspeople – but amateur sports will be put on hold.”
The official UK Government website states, “To reduce social contact, the Government has ordered certain businesses and venues to close. These include:
- All non-essential retail, including, but not limited to clothing and electronics stores, vehicle showrooms, travel agents, betting shops, auction houses, tailors, car washes, tobacco and vape shops.
- Indoor and outdoor leisure facilities such as bowling alleys, leisure centres and gyms, sports facilities including swimming pools, golf courses and driving ranges, dance studios, stables and riding centres, soft play facilities, climbing walls and climbing centres, archery and shooting ranges, water and theme parks,
- Entertainment venues such as theatres, concert halls, cinemas, museums and galleries, casinos, adult gaming centres and arcades, bingo halls, bowling alleys, concert halls, zoos and other animal attractions, botanical gardens;
- Personal care facilities such as hair, beauty and nail salons, tattoo parlours, spas, massage parlours, body and skin piercing services, non-medical acupuncture, and tanning salons.
Other European nations are also instituting lockdowns in a bid to control the pandemic.
