PUBS in England have reopened their doors to allow outdoor drinking as part of the lifting of Covid restrictions. Brits packed out boozers up and down the country on April 12, 2021, to enjoy their first proper pint in months. ???? Read our coronavirus live blog for the latest news & updates… What time do pubs close? […]
PUBS in England have reopened their doors to allow outdoor drinking as part of the lifting of Covid restrictions.
Brits packed out boozers up and down the country on April 12, 2021, to enjoy their first proper pint in months.
Read our coronavirus live blog for the latest news & updates…
Outdoor drinking in pub beer gardens in England was allowed from April 12.
The rules Brits need to stick to while taking a trip down to their local are much more relaxed compared to when pubs were last open – but some restrictions will remain in place.
The hated 10pm curfew has been scrapped and punters won’t have to buy a scotch egg to get served alcohol.
So pubs can close at their usual time which is usually at 11pm.
Eating and drinking inside at pubs and restaurants will be off the menu until May 17 at the earliest.
Social distancing will remain in place at least until autumn, with measures set to be reconsidered in the summer when more people are vaccinated.
Boozers will have to stick to the “rule of six” limits or be in a party with no more than two households presents, while abiding to two-metre distancing from others.
Pub-goers aged 16 and over have to check in to NHS Test and Trace or provide their contact details to staff.
You don’t have to prove your Covid status currently with a coronavirus passport.
And there is still no flitting from table to table or waltzing about the bars – when not seated, customers need to wear face masks, unless exempt.
This is expected to stay all summer as a compromise for the early reopening.
Pub bosses previously blasted an outdoor-only drinking plan from early April and have demanded the return of inside drinking.
Patrick Dardis, chief executive of the Young’s pubs chain, said that spring rain would make the outdoors-only idea unworkable and slammed it as “nonsense”.
Meanwhile, Tim Martin, chairman of pubs giant JD Wetherspoon, said the decision had been made by “ministers with no experience of business, or empathy for business”.
Major venues like nightclubs, theatres, and cinemas aren’t likely to open until later in the summer at the earliest.
In Scotland and Wales pubs can open their doors for outdoor drinking on April 26.
No date has been set for pubs to reopen in Northern Ireland.
