Hospitality is screwed again

And now schools which had been told to close early for Christmas by their local authority have been ORDERED to stay open by Gavin Williamson.
Shambles.

Allowing people to mix over Christmas is a terrible idea.
Hopefully people will use their common sense and just cancel Christmas this year.
Just because something is allowed doesn’t mean you have to do it.

There is no evidence vegan I think it’s ridiculous I absolutely agree with your post and sentiments These half cock measures are a load of rubbish to seem like they are doing something
The free for all of three families meeting over Christmas is much more of a danger
The theatres, cinemas, pubs and restaurants have spent millions on making their buildings safe it’s all water down the drain
Yes we should have locked down completely for three months or stay open and do our best, these half cock in, out, shake all about measures are complete and utter rubbish with nobody having a clue which way is up

I agree vegansrock there is no sense at all in gyms and salons being open, yet I cannot meet a friend for a coffee or a meal.

I would feel far safer in a cafe where you are escorted to your table, than a gym. I have not been to my gym, or my hairdressers since early March. Yet these are open, and hospitality is closed. As you say, lockdown totally or not at all.

I felt safer in our local pub than I do in the local Tesco Express. Pub had locals only, designated, spaced tables, enforced t&t, table service, sanitiser everywhere and mask on as soon as your bottom left your seat. Tesco, mostly masked, little observance of distancing, no t&t (why is that in a lot of shops?), floor markings for one way went ages ago and sanitiser on the way in that few use.

I agree. We felt very safe in our little local pub. My husband went to Aldi yesterday and said it was chaos. I realise shops have to stay open but I feel for the hospitality industry. There are a few petitions online to appoint a Minister for Hospitality. We have signed one.

I feel desperately sorry for the hospitality industry. As others have said they are, in the main, very safe, well organised places.

Over the past year we have supported these places by eating out when permitted. We ate out in August with furloughed family and without exception felt completely safe.

I think the government was in a very tricky situation with regards to Christmas. They knew, as we all do that an awful lot of people would have completely ignored any instruction to stay at home and not mix over the Christmas period.

It would have been totally unenforceable, would have caused a lot of resentment, so the five day relaxation of the rules probably seemed a fair compromise.

It’s very unfair to keep heaping blame on the government.
They have always had an incredibly difficult balancing act to perform by attempting to suppress the virus, along with protecting livelihoods.

Then of course there are the Brexit trade talks thrown into the mix.

I don’t envy them one bit.

Isn't it the case, though, that covid cases increased after the August 'Eat out to help out' scheme? Which does provide a rationale for closing the hospitality sector.

OTH, schools have been a very significant source of infection, but there would be an outcry if they were closed again (indeed, we have the ridiculous situation of legal threats against them if they close). Yet schools are one of the most difficult places to make 'covid safe' without a huge cash injection, that the government is not minded to give them...

Lucca

And now schools which had been told to close early for Christmas by their local authority have been ORDERED to stay open by Gavin Williamson.
Shambles.

Well I don’t think many are taking any notice. All the Waltham Forest schools closed yesterday afternoon , DGS’s , with one hour’s notice. DGS (4) said to me on our nightly FaceTime yesterday “I think I’m going back after Christmas Granny but I don’t know which day “
Him and me both!

Isn't it the case, though, that covid cases increased after the August 'Eat out to help out' scheme? Which does provide a rationale for closing the hospitality sector.

Maizie I don't know when they release the infection figures in relation to when the infection took place, but Eat to help out which was also accompanied by Shop for Britain (something like that) was then followed by the start of school term. So do we know if the various attempts to boost the economy were to blame?

Also, as the weather was so good, in the SE, much of the eating/drinking was outside.

With respect, you're being a bit parochial there, aren't you, Riverwalk? Places further north don't always enjoy such balmy weather as the SE! A lot of evening dining was done very much indoors here in the NE.

I've been keeping records of the Co. Durham cases. Which were incredibly low (like about 12 per week) right through until late August, early September when they started rising quite considerably. Schools didn't go back until early September so any covid infections wouldn't have really affected the figures until mid - late September (which they did...).

I don't recall a Shop for Britain campaign, I'm afraid; perhaps because a) I don't trust the government and b) it wouldn't have made any sense...

It’s a shame that people are only now concerned about restaurants closing when many in the North West have been closed for weeks - doesn’t our economy matter?

Same here in the West Midlands Teacheranne. Hospitality has been closed for weeks.

Yes it should all be fully locked down INCLUDING schools and colleges!What is Gavin Williamson thinking???! Hes a bloody idiot!

Whatever they do there are people out there who will ignore it unfortunately so I think that is why they have eased up on the Christmas regulations and then there will be big spikes in January. I’m not being lured out this Christmas. MaisieD is right cases did increase after the eat out to help out scheme and then all over the country in October onwards where students returned to University.

One of the other dodgy areas was/ is grassroots football. it would be much safer to go to a professional football ground with paid marshalls to make sure Covid regulations are followed. Instead they have all flocked to amateur football grounds who have been allowed to have as much as 10 times their normal spectators as it’s based on the number the ground will hold, and the regulations aren’t observed properly.