- Britons headed out on yesterday as they made the most of the final day of eased social distancing guidelines
- Across the country, people met in large groups despite fears over growing infection rates of Covid-19
- From today people will only be able to socialise with six amid fears that young people are fuelling rising rate
Britons enjoyed a final group pint together last night ahead of the strict new ‘rule of six’ coronavirus crackdown hitting today – with the government telling families to shop their neighbours if they broke regulations.
Just hours after the restrictions were brought in this morning Crime and Policing minister Kit Malthouse confirmed those flouting the law should be reported to officers.
It came as a 10pm curfew for pubs was also being considered with Justice Secretary Robert Buckland warning that young people were ‘forgetting’ covid regulations.
The shot across the bow by the government came after people met outdoors in drinking spots across the UK’s cities before the hard-line restrictions.
This morning crime and policing minister Kit Malthouse confirmed families should report their neighbours if they saw them breaking the rules.
And he did not rule out the possibility of a dedicated hotline – although insisted the police non-emergency number was the contact point for now.
He said: ‘We are in discussion about what reporting mechanisms might be, there is obviously the non-emergency number people can ring to report issues they wish to and certainly in lockdown – the initial phase of lockdown – we did see a surge of those reports coming through to the police.
‘If people are concerned and they do think there has been contravention then that option is open to them .
‘It’s open people to do that through the non-emergency number and if they are concerned and they do see that kind of thing then absolutely they should think about that.’
The government’s ‘rule of six’ came in today, as as it tried to tackle rising coronavirus infection rates by restricting meetings both indoors and outdoors.
As Britain stands on the brink of lockdown Mark II:
- Police last night cracked down on young revellers hitting the booze before Boris Johnson’s new six person limit to social gatherings kicked in today;
- Nightingale hospitals ‘have been put on standby’ and the nation warned to adhere to the Prime Minister’s new rules or face another full lockdown;
- The Government’s ‘world-beating’ testing system is in ‘chaos’ with a backlog of 185,000 swabs and is dispatching the samples to Italy and Germany to deal with the strain;
- Six West End theatres say they’ll reopen next month with temperature checks at the doors, face masks and socially-distanced seating;
- Tory donors have urged the Government to protect the economy above all because without money there can be no healthcare.
Police can fine people up to £3,200 pounds if they disobey the new rules.
Mr Malthouse added to Radio 4: ‘Police officers will obviously assess the situation in front of them but in the end we all have an individual duty towards our collective health and we hope that view will prevail.
‘Police should start by encouraging people to comply and explaining to them what the situation is and impressing upon them the duty they have to our collective health. Only in the situation where individuals refuse to comply should police consider moving towards enforcement.’
The hard tactics followed cities last night seeing revellers mount a last hurrah before the rules with the warm weather providing perfect conditions for the social gatherings.
Yesterday sun-soaked areas such as Bournemouth, Brighton and Nottingham were packed before the strict new regulations came in to tackle rising coronavirus infection rates.
But it came as officials urged young people to heed their warnings and remember ‘the importance of the rules’ as the country’s Covid case total continues to soar.
Some 3,330 coronavirus cases were reported today – up 11 per cent from last Sunday. It follows 3,497 confirmed cases on Saturday and 3,539 cases on Friday.
Meanwhile, a report has revealed that up to 4.5 million people most at risk from Covid will be instructed to stay at home under a new shielding plan based on health, age and weight.
Letters with tailored advice are to be sent to individuals based on a new ‘risk model’ which will factor in underlying health conditions, age, sex and weight.
It will be introduced first for areas with high rates of infection but a Whitehall source told The Sunday Telegraph ‘if the rate is so concerning across the whole of England we are prepared to do it on a blanket basis.’
In Bournemouth, swathes of sun worshippers lined roads and filled beaches to enjoy the heatwave.
And in London, many headed to bars, standing in close proximity despite the persisting pandemic.
Many chose to push the boat out while they still could and went out for a last hurrah before once again being constrained to friendship ‘bubbles’.
Owain, 24, who travelled from Guildford, Surrey, down to Brighton with his friends on Saturday night, said: ‘This new rule means we’re not going be able to go out for ages together as a group.
‘It might even be after Christmas before we see each other again so we wanted to go out in style.’
It was a similar tale for families during the daytime yesterday. The Ledbetter family from Crawley, West Sussex, enjoyed Sunday lunch at the Music Hall in Brighton.
Haydn Ledbetter, 49, wife Donna, 45, and their two children joined three other friends and their families to make a party of 14.ADVERTISEMENT
They had taken over two benches to enjoy fish and chips in the sunshine.
Mr Ledbetter, an airport worker, said: ‘Frankly the Government has made so many U-turns this summer none of us trust them to make a good call any more.
‘If the law is still in place at Christmas then I certainly won’t be sticking to it.’
Ahead of the crackdown, Mr Buckland has warned the government could go even further next week and introduce curfews.
He told Sky’s Sophy Ridge On Sunday: ‘I think that as you’ve seen we’ve been very prepared to move quickly where necessary and where the evidence points us.
‘I think there’s an issue about social occasions and social events and particularly young people getting together and enjoying themselves sometimes a bit too much and forgetting the importance of the rules.
I think it would be idle of me to speculate as to what measures we might have to bring in as we approach the winter.’
Prime Minister Boris Johnson is believed to be considering introducing a 10pm or 11pm curfew on restaurants, bars and pubs if local measures are unable to bring the spread of the virus under control.
The move stems from a concern that adherence to social distancing measures diminishes the more people consume alcohol.
It comes amid rising fears that the virus could rampage through Britain once again.
Yesterday, more than 3,000 coronavirus cases were recorded overall in the UK for the second day in a row – the first time since mid-May that recorded cases have been above that level on consecutive days.
The Government said that as of 9am on Saturday, there had been a further 3,497 lab-confirmed cases in the UK, slightly lower than the 3,539 cases recorded on Friday.
Speaking about the rise in cases, Peter Openshaw, professor of experimental medicine, Imperial College London, said a ‘trickle’ of cases can turn into a ‘cascade’, adding that if people do not abide by the ‘rule of six’ now then the country faces going back into ‘hard lockdown’.
He said: ‘I think everyone is in agreement that we really need to act very quickly now in order to prevent this from growing exponentially.
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‘I think that’s the main point is that we must act fast because it’s so much harder to get this sort of thing under control if you delay.
‘Even a few days is potentially going to be quite dangerous now at this particular moment.’
Former chief scientific adviser and member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) Sir Mark Walport has warned that the country is ‘on the edge of losing control’ of Covid-19.
Asked if he thinks Sir Mark is right, Prof Openshaw told Ridge: ‘Well yes I think that is right.’
Police across Britain last night launched a crack down on illegal parties as revellers hit the town for boozy celebrations.
