Police to hand out on-the-spot fines for anyone not wearing a face covering in shops from July 24

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Boris Johnson’s plan to make face masks mandatory in shops descended into chaos and confusion today as his own ministers were openly split on the issue and police said they will find it ‘impossible’ to hand out £100 fines to those flouting the riles from July 24.

The Prime Minister has been accused of confusing millions of Britons by forcing people to wear face coverings in confined spaces despite his deputy chief medical officer Jenny Harries cautioning that wearing a face mask ‘is not a good idea for the public’ at the start of lockdown.

Boris Johnson and other senior ministers have been wrestling to balance their instinctive dislike for ‘nanny state’ moves with rules to ensure public safety – and Michael Gove – regarded as one of the most libertarian ministers in Cabinet – sparked fresh confusion by saying on Sunday that masks in shops should be a matter of ‘courtesy’ and ‘common sense’ rather than required.

The split among ministers was laid bare today as Mr Gove was pictured picking up breakfast in a Westminster Pret a Manger this morning without a mask – minutes later Trade Secretary Liz Truss arrived wearing a blue face covering similar to the one worn by the Prime Minister yesterday. The confusion was also increased by Environment Secretary George Eustice, who refused to rule out the mandatory use of face coverings being extended to offices and other workplaces during a BBC interview this morning. 

Today Ken Marsh, chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation, added the enforcement of compulsory masks and the levying of £100 fines was ‘impossible to enforce’, adding, ‘we can’t have police outside every shop’.  

Shopkeepers have also said they are not sure if they have to wear masks themselves – or if they are expected to refuse to serve customers or even call police if a customer arrives not wearing one. 

And Mayor of London Sadiq Khan revealed that since lockdown began to be eased more than a month ago just 59 people have been fined for not wearing masks on the Tube and admitted that the delay in making them compulsory has only caused more confusion in the UK. Speaking on BBC Radio 4 today, Mr Khan admitted some 10 per cent of people travelling at rush hour in the Capital are still refusing to wear a mask on public transport.   

 

Boris Johnson’s struggle over imposing rules on the public has been evident from early in the crisis, when the PM initially delayed enforcing a full lockdown after urging the public to obey social distancing rules. After weeks of dithering, Mr Johnson finally set the stage for face masks to be made compulsory in shops during a ‘People’s PMQs’ session on Friday.

Speaking as Nicola Sturgeon imposed the rule in Scotland, Mr Johnson conceded that ‘scientific opinion has shifted’ and said it was a good idea to wear them in confined spaces. Downing Street sources then briefed that making them compulsory could be expected within days.

However, Michael Gove – regarded as one of the most libertarian ministers in Cabinet – then sparked fresh confusion by saying on Sunday that masks in shops should be a matter of ‘courtesy’ rather than required.

Aides immediately tried to quell signs of a rift by arguing that Mr Gove had been ‘over-interpreted’, while No10 also tried to signal that a ban was still on the cards.

However, Justice Secretary Robert Buckland made the situation worse yesterday when he desperately dodged taking a position in interviews yesterday, saying he was in the camp that ‘perhaps’ masks should be mandatory.

By last night, with a backlash at the shambles gathering pace, Downing Street decided that it needed to clarify the position and briefed that masks will be required in shops from July 24. 

Retailers and police forces have today slammed the government’s ‘impossible’ new rules making face masks compulsory in all stores from next week. 

Retailers will be asked to advise customers to wear masks but their staff will not be expected to enforce the law. Instead, police will be given powers to dish out fines.

Shoppers who fail to comply risk fines of £100 under the new regulations which come in on Friday, July 24, to stop a second wave of coronavirus.  

But the move has sparked confusion among retailers, who remain in the dark over whether they will be made to wear a mask behind a perspex screen, and how to deal with customers not following the rules.

Chief executive of the British Retail Consortium Helen Dickinson said ‘more clarity was needed’ on how to protect shop workers from aggressive customers refusing to wear face masks.  

Speaking on BBC Radio 4 today, Sadiq Khan admitted some 10 per cent of people travelling at rush hour in the Capital are still refusing to wear a mask on public transport. 

The government’s move to make face mask compulsory comes as:

• The UK announced 11 more coronavirus deaths in the preliminary daily toll, taking the total number of victims to 44,840;
• More than 100 outbreaks of coronavirus in schools, businesses and pubs are ‘swiftly and silently’ being dealt with every week across the UK, Health Secretary Matt Hancock revealed;
• The drive to bring workers back to the office from coronavirus lockdown hit a roadblock after some of country’s biggest firms said only 40 per cent will return from home;
• Councils in England are preparing to make significant cuts in jobs and services after losing income on investments in airports, cinemas and offices amid the coronavirus pandemic;
• British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca is preparing to launch human trials of an antibody treatment that could protect old and vulnerable people from coronavirus;
• Beauty salons, nail bars and tattoo shops in England opened the first time in four months as part of the latest relaxation of lockdown restrictions;
• Immunity to Covid-19 might be lost within months, according to research that suggests the virus could infect people on an annual basis, like the flu.

The law will require people to wear simple cloth face coverings, rather than the medical grade masks used by front-line NHS workers. Only young children or those with certain disabilities will be exempt from the new regulations. 

Ken Marsh, Chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation – which represents rank-and-file officers – told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘Shopkeepers need to step up to the plate and take some responsibility. 

‘They can quite easily put signs up on their doors ‘No mask on, no entry, this is private property’.

‘That’s the first point we need to get across because this cannot all be laid on the shoulders of the police yet again.

‘The second point is it will be nigh-on impossible for enforcement because you won’t have a police officer on every shop door because there isn’t enough of us.

‘If a shopkeeper calls the police because someone hasn’t got a mask on, they haven’t got the power to detain them so that person can just walk away.

‘We’ll be driving around and around London looking for people who aren’t wearing masks, it’s absolutely absurd.’

JD Sports chief executive Peter Cowgill criticised the delay in the Government ordering the mandatory use of face masks in shops in England, suggesting it could hit consumer confidence. 

Mr Eustice said the face coverings would not be compulsory for shop staff, or in pubs and restaurants, and he defended the delays to introducing the measure.

He told the BBC that ministers want to ‘give people time to plan and prepare’ by delaying the enforcement of the measure until July 24.

The Cabinet minister said the measure, which had been in place in Scotland since Friday, was now backed by the Westminster Government because the evidence ‘has been evolving’.

The move follows a weekend of confusion over whether ministers intended to make face coverings compulsory after Boris Johnson said they were looking at ‘stricter’ rules. 

He told Sky News today: ‘The evidence, the understanding, has been evolving. 

‘So the World Health Organisation changed their guidance back in June and following that the Government changed its guidance and we recommended that people wear face coverings in enclosed spaces when they’re out and about.

‘We then sharpened that and made it compulsory for public transport in the middle of June and what we’ve really got here is, as we loosen the lockdown and allow more venues to open, we need to consider the mix of measures we have in place to limit the transmission and control the virus.

‘And that’s why we’re making this next step, which is to say it’s mandatory to wear masks in retail environments.’

Mr Eustice said the mandatory use of face masks in England would apply to ‘all shops’, but not pubs and restaurants, as he appeared to contradict guidance for hairdressers.

‘Hairdressers, you’ve always required a mask to go to,’ he told Sky News.

But the Government guidance says: ‘There is no requirement for the client to wear any additional protection such as a mask or face covering, when the practitioner is wearing a visor.’

Mr Eustice added: ‘We’re not for instance mandating the wearing of masks in pubs and restaurants, because obviously people have got to eat.

‘We’ve been evolving the measures we’ve had as we come out of lockdown and we’ve been strengthening the guidance progressively on masks making it mandatory first on public transport and now we’re going to that next step to make it mandatory in retail environments.’

The British Retail Consortium today said more ‘clarity’ was needed on the use of face coverings in shops in England after days of ‘mixed messages’.

Helen Dickinson told the Today programme: ‘Our expectation is that [shop staff] would not need to wear a mask behind a screen. 

‘The whole point about face coverings is that it’s another level of mitigation – we have social distancing, the importance of hygiene measures. 

‘Within a retail environment there is a huge amount of time, resource and investment that has gone into putting the infrastructure like those Perspex screens in place and it’s also quite different for a retail colleague to be required to wear a mask for eight hours a day.

‘The job of the retailer is to encourage compliance but where the boundary gets more difficult for people who work in retail is that they are often on the frontline of that very small minority of people who don’t want to comply with the rules or become verbally aggressive to the shop worker.’

Sadiq Khan, meanwhile, said he welcomes the Government’s ‘U-turn’ on making face coverings mandatory in shops in England.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he said masks should be worn in shops, supermarkets and gyms. 

He said a suggestion that people refusing to wear a face covering on the Tube were not being fined or stopped was ‘not true’. 

He said TfL enforcement officers and the BTP have stopped in the region of 18,500 people from travelling on public transport and issued 59 fines, with ‘more than 90% compliance,’ from passengers traveling at rush hour.  

Mr Khan claimed the government’s concern about police standing on the streets issuing fines was ‘misfounded and misplaced.’

He added: ‘The problem is not the issue of enforcement, the problem is the mixed messaged and the confused communication, that has been the issue. 

‘The government needs to ensure that the test, trace, isolate system is fully operational – all these things will lead to consumer confidence and the public having confidence to return to the shops. It’s really important the government gets a grip, makes sure the public has confidence the virus is under control.’ 

JD Sports chief executive Peter Cowgill criticised the delay to introducing the measure, saying ‘it will have an impact on consumer confidence’ as he blamed ministers for ‘inconsistencies and the indecisiveness’.

He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘It’s come as a surprise at the lateness, a little bit like quarantine, and it seems to have come at the back end rather than the front end of the pandemic, and even more so it’s been delayed until July 24, which is very difficult to work out and seems quite indecisive.

‘I’m not sure about the rationale for the delay, but I do think it will have an impact on consumer confidence.

‘Maybe it will be a positive for older customers but a deterrent for younger ones. I think it’s the inconsistencies and the indecisiveness that causes the lack of confidence. 

‘I actually think the delay up to the 24th is quite confusing as well.’

He suggested his store will offer face coverings to anyone not wearing them but said it will be for police to enforce.

‘The guidance so far is that our store colleagues are not really to get involved and it’s a police matter to enforce rather than for them to get involved in any potential public disturbances,’ he said.

The Daily Mail revealed yesterday that the Government has procured ten factory production lines capable of making five million masks a week.

Face coverings have been compulsory on public transport since June 15 and, last Friday, Scotland ordered shoppers to wear them.

Government sources said guidance on masks in other settings would be ‘kept under review’. 

The move may anger those who find them uncomfortable or dislike the idea of state compulsion.

One libertarian Tory MP has already vowed to stop shopping rather than wear a mask. 

But Boris Johnson yesterday said they were important in confined spaces as ‘a kind of extra insurance’.

A Downing Street spokesman said: ‘There is growing evidence that wearing a face covering in an enclosed space helps protect individuals and those around them from coronavirus. 

‘The Prime Minister has been clear that people should be wearing face coverings in shops and we will make this mandatory from July 24.’

The move follows days of confusion about the Government’s stance on the issue.

On Sunday, Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove said that while it was ‘basic good manners’ to wear masks in shops it would not be made compulsory.

He said it was ‘always better to trust to people’s common sense’.

A Whitehall source played down the idea of a Cabinet split, but acknowledged that Mr Gove’s intervention had been ‘unhelpful’.

Mr Johnson, who was initially sceptical about face masks, yesterday said there was growing evidence they could help slow the spread of coronavirus.

Speaking on a visit to the London Ambulance Service yesterday, the Prime Minister, who was wearing a mask, said they had ‘a great deal of value in confined spaces’ where people are coming into contact with those they do not normally meet.

He added: ‘As the virus comes down in incidence and we have more and more success, I think face coverings are a kind of extra insurance we can all use to stop it coming back and stop it getting out of control again.’

Face masks have been compulsory in shops in many European countries for months. 

The Czech Republic introduced the requirement on March 18, with Austria following suit on April 6, Germany on April 22, France on May 10 and Spain on May 20.

But in the UK, both Government scientists and ministers have questioned their value. 

In March, deputy chief medical officer Jenny Harries said wearing a mask could ‘trap the virus’ and cause the person wearing it to breathe it in.

‘For the average member of the public walking down a street, it is not a good idea [to wear a face mask],’ she added.

But scientists have changed their view as evidence of the risk of asymptomatic and airborne transmission has grown. 

‘Officials now believe that face coverings can help stop people spreading the virus, particularly when they do not know they have it.

Royal Society president Dr Venki Ramakrishnan yesterday said the evidence was ‘now quite strongly in favour of using face coverings in enclosed spaces where we’re likely to come into contact with strangers’.

He added: ‘The Government should be very clear. 

‘It’s not consistent to make it mandatory on public transport and not make it mandatory in other enclosed and busy public spaces, because the behaviour of the virus is the same in all of these spaces.’

The move is part of a wider push to open up the economy and give consumers confidence to go out and spend.

Downing Street yesterday confirmed that official advice to work from home where possible is now under review. 

‘The PM said last week that people should ‘start to go to work now if you can’.

Mr Johnson is planning to set out a new ‘road map’ this week setting out a nine-month timetable for easing social distancing measures in the hope of giving people the confidence to return to near-normal life.

But Tory MP Sir Christopher Chope said the mask policy would have the opposite effect. Speaking at the weekend, he said: ‘I don’t think I will be going in shops if they impose a condition that people wear masks.’

James Daunt, managing director of bookseller Waterstones, yesterday said asking customers to wear a face covering was not a problem.

He told Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘If it reassures people, then it is a perfectly reasonable measure to take.’

But Mr Daunt said staff working across his chain of stores could not be asked to police the policy. 

‘There will be a tiny, tiny minority of people who will be confrontational over it and it is not the position of shop workers to enter into that situation,’ he said.

Labour health spokesman Jonathan Ashworth said the Government’s policy was muddled.

He added: ‘Why yet again have ministers been slow in making a decision in this pandemic, and why will it take another 11 days before these new guidelines to come into force?’ 

The regulations will be made under the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984, with a maximum fine of £100 – reduced to £50 if it is paid within 14 days.

As is the case on public transport, children under 11 and those with certain disabilities will be exempt.

For Labour, shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said ministers needed to explain why it had taken them so long to act.

‘The Government has been slow and muddled again over face coverings,’ he said.

 

Eight out of 10 Covid-19 patients died in one English hospital as NHS data reveals ‘stark’ differences in death rates across the country with fewer than half surviving at 11 trusts
By Sam Blanchard Senior Health Reporter for MailOnline

Coronavirus death rates vary massively across NHS hospitals in England, according to shocking data.

Eight out of 10 infected patients have died in one hospital in the South West — but just 12.5 per cent succumbed to the illness in a London trust. 

The data, seen by The Guardian, showed more than half of Covid-19 patients have died in at least 11 hospital trusts across the country.

Data from a study presented to government scientists last month showed the death rate for hospitalised patients is 28 per cent across the UK, on average.

But information being sent to senior doctors, which the NHS denies is official, shows that this varies wildly between hospitals.

Twenty-six NHS trusts had death rates lower than a quarter — between 12.5 per cent and 25 per cent. But rates were higher at the remaining 109.

Experts said the huge disparity in death rates did not necessarily mean patients were getting worse care, but that it could be a consequence of the population in the area or the number of patients they had treated. 

Older people are more likely to die from coronavirus and some regions have far more older people — the average age in the South West, for example, is eight years higher than it is in London.  

NHS England said it did not produce the data — which the newspaper said had been adjusted for age — and say they appear to be ‘experimental’.

For comparison, the national death rate for everyone who tests positive — not only  hospital patients — is 4.2 per cent in the US, 4.6 per cent in Germany, and 15.5 per cent in the UK. The infection itself is thought to kill around 1 per cent of all cases — but not everyone who catches the virus gets spotted.

The NHS data showed that two of the five hospital trusts with the highest death rates were in the South West — one with 80 per cent and another with 62 per cent.

Specific trusts were not named in the report, The Guardian said, and were referred to only by the region they were in.

Other hospitals where more than half of patients were dying included one in the North West (68 per cent), the East of England (60 per cent) and one in London (54 per cent).

Three of the hospitals with the lowest death rates were in London — with 12.5, 14 and 15 per cent — along with one in the Midlands (13 per cent) and one in the South East (15 per cent). 

Dr Alison Pittard, chief of the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine, told the newspaper: ‘That is a huge variation, a huge range. 

‘I’m surprised at the degree of variation. A spread between 12.5 per cent and 80 per cent is quite stark.’

She added: ‘We know that poorer communities and BAME communities have a higher risk of mortality, so if a trust is in an area of higher-risk individuals you would expect that trust’s Covid-related mortality rate to be higher.’

The exact factors that have played into some NHS trusts having significantly higher death rates are not clear.

The ethnicity of patients in a NHS trust’s area, how wealthy they are and their general health are all contributing factors.

Data has shown non-white people, those in poorer areas and people with existing health conditions are all more likely to die if they catch Covid-19.

Hospitals with small numbers of patients may also have an artificially high death rate because an increase of one could push the average up significantly.  

The NHS data gives a breakdown of 135 major hospital trusts around the country and calculated how many of the diagnosed patients died, to get a rate of death.

It is not publicly available, however, so it is unknown whether some regions’ hospitals were suffering significantly more fatalities than others. 

NHS England denied that it had produced the data.

It said in a statement: ‘We do not recognise these figures, which appear to be experimental analysis of unverified data, but there is now a wide range of published data on the role that health inequalities, including pre-existing conditions and other health factors, have played when it comes to the impact of Covid, including from the ONS and PHE.

‘The NHS is accelerating work to tackle health inequalities, and will shortly be providing local services with a range of actions they should build in to their plans for the coming months.’ 

Public Health England publishes weekly data showing how deaths break down by region, which shows that London has the highest overall death rate for all patients.

In the capital 19.8 per cent of people — not necessarily all admitted to hospital — have died of the virus, compared to 19.6 per cent in the West Midlands and 18.6 per cent in the East of England.

The lowest regional death rate has been in Yorkshire and The Humber, where 13 per cent of people officially diagnosed have died.

The other regions had death rates of 16 per cent in the South West, 15.9 per cent in the South East, 15.6 per cent in the North East, 15.4 per cent in the North West and 14.8 per cent in the East Midlands.

Government papers published last week after being presented to officials in June showed that the average hospital death rate has been just over a quarter across the UK. 

A study of 64,066 hospital patients with Covid-19 in the UK found that 28 per cent of them – more than one in four – die with the disease.

Deaths were higher for people admitted to intensive care, of whom 35 per cent succumbed to the disease, and even higher for those who had to be put onto ventilators – 42 per cent.

The COVID-19 Clinical Information Network (CO-CIN), comprised of university experts from around the UK, presented the results to SAGE – the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies – on June 22.

The study had found people spend an average of nine days in hospital if they are admitted with coronavirus, or catch it while on a ward.

Some 16 per cent of patients require high-flow oxygen therapy to help them breathe.

The most common symptoms for hospital patients are coughs (63 per cent), fever (62 per cent) and shortness of breath (61 per cent) – but a worrying one in 16 people (6 per cent) claimed to have had no symptoms at all, the study found.