Face coverings MUST be worn in shops in England from Friday 24th July

[Hereford Voice]

Wearing a face covering in shops and supermarkets in England is to become mandatory from 24 July.

Those who fail to comply with the new rules could face a fine of up to £100, the government has announced.

The move will bring England into line with Scotland and other major European nations like Spain, Italy and Germany.

Enforcement will be carried out by police - not retail staff - and anyone failing to wear a face covering while shopping will be subject to a fine of up to £100, or £50 if paid within 14 days.

Can wearing face masks stop the virus?

Face masks won't stop coronavirus from spreading so you still need to follow health officials' advice for social distancing and washing your hands regularly. What they can do is help reduce the likelihood that you pass it on if you are suffering from the virus – remember that there are also people who don't show symptoms of COVID-19.

As Professor Chris Whitty, the government's Chief Medical Officer, puts it, wearing a face covering "is an added precaution that may have some benefit in reducing the likelihood that a person with the infection passes it on." 

Most retailers producing these commercially-available face masks state that the face masks they sell are not sold as Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for health and care workers to use in the work place.

Who is exempt? 

Children under 11 and people with certain disabilities will be exempt as they already are on public transport.

Other countries 

The World Health Organisation shifted towards recommending face coverings in June.

Britons have been among the slowest to embrace mass mask-wearing. Many European countries, including Germany, Spain, Italy and Greece, have already made it compulsory to wear face coverings inside shops. A YouGov poll found that 36% of people in the UK wear a face mask in public places, compared with 86% in Spain, 83% in Italy, 78% in France and 65% in Germany.

Tourists visiting the Costa del Sol must wear masks in public places from Wednesday, mirroring moves in Catalonia and the Balearics to fine people up to £90 for flouting the rules.

 

[megilleland]

Idea for a sequel to the Masked Singer - The Masked Shopper

Hosted by Nick Cannon, with panelists Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy, Nicole Scherzinger and Robin Thicke, "The Masked Shopper" is a top-secret shopping competition in which celebrities face off against one another while shrouded from head to toe in an elaborate costume, concealing their identity. Beats Supermarket Sweep any day.

[megilleland]

Where do you dispose all of these masks? Are they going to blow around High Town with all the other rubbish.

[megilleland]

With all these masks being worn it is going to be difficult to know who the robbers are:

https://youtu.be/DInM68YgcC4

[twowheelsgood]

8 hours ago, megilleland said:

Where do you dispose all of these masks? Are they going to blow around High Town with all the other rubbish.

I'm seeing quite a lot dumped onto verges and hedges, along with gloves, when I'm out on my bike. Being mostly blue, they are very obvious. People are disgusting for sure.

[Hereford Voice]

2 hours ago, twowheelsgood said:

I'm seeing quite a lot dumped onto verges and hedges, along with gloves, when I'm out on my bike. Being mostly blue, they are very obvious. People are disgusting for sure.

Sad that people cannot dispose of their litter properly