Prime Minister Boris Johnson yesterday announced further changes to lockdown measures in England to help businesses get back on their feet and get people back in their jobs.
From 4 July, the Prime Minister has announced that pubs, restaurants and hairdressers will be able to reopen, providing they adhere to Covid Secure guidelines. From the same date, he has set out that two households will be able to meet up in any setting with social distancing measures, and that people can now enjoy staycations in England with the reopening of accommodation sites.
Following a review, the Prime Minister has also set out that where it is not possible to stay two metres apart, guidance will allow people to keep a social distance of ‘one metre plus’. This means staying one metre apart, plus mitigations which reduce the risk of transmission.
The changes apply in England only.
Ged Mason OBE, CEO of the Morson Group, said, “While millions of people that are employed in the hospitality sector will breathe a sigh of relief as the 2m social distancing rule is relaxed, it will have a wider impact than in this industry alone. Construction, manufacturing and engineering sectors will also begin to see normality creep back into their working lives, with any loosening of the current legislation providing the opportunity to bring more people back to site and work environments.
“As social distancing is eased, then projects that are currently relying on just 50% of their usual capacity and resource, for example, will be able to scale up their operations, meaning they are more likely to deliver to original timeframes and budgets. That said, it is imperative that health and safety remains paramount; this process cannot be rushed. The virus is still at large, and any complacency will be a huge risk. It is important to protect jobs, but it is more important to protect lives.”
“Relaxed social distancing will not just add a sense of normality that could bring back confidence in the UK, but it will reignite industries that contribute billions of pounds and millions of jobs to the economy each year. The Government knows how important it is to reduce the unemployment rate and get people off furlough and back into work. This announcement is a landmark moment. While it will be important to grasp it with both hands, it must always be with one eye on the pandemic,” Morson said.
Morson added, “As more industries reopen, we must protect those vulnerable to job losses such as young and ethnic minority groups. But we also need to help individuals upskill to identify new roles they can excel in. For instance, the apprenticeship levy can be better used at this time to train up individuals in short-term courses that are desperately needed to get the job market and the wider economy moving again. There is a huge demand for jobs in logistics, manufacturing and professional services, but we need to help people get to them.”