People should “behave responsibly” as pub gardens, restaurants with outdoor dining and shops reopen in England, Boris Johnson has urged.
The latest easing of coronavirus lockdown restrictions on Monday permits non-essential shops to reopen as well as salons, gyms, swimming pools and zoos, although social mixing indoors remains heavily restricted.
Queues were seen outside pubs as they opened their doors to eager drinkers at the stroke of midnight, despite freezing temperatures sweeping the country. Crowds of shoppers were also seen queuing on Monday morning.
The prime minister said the latest move was a “major step forward” but that the public must remember to take social distancing measures seriously in order to prevent a rise in cases.
“I’m sure it will be a huge relief for those business owners who have been closed for so long, and for everyone else it’s a chance to get back to doing some of the things we love and have missed,” he said.
“I urge everyone to continue to behave responsibly and remember ‘hands, face, space and fresh air’ to suppress Covid as we push on with our vaccination programme.”
The British Beer and Pub Association has estimated just 40% of licensed premises have the space to reopen for outdoor service.
Scientists also urged people to be cautious as they warned cases will “inevitably” increase with the easing of restrictions.
Professor Peter Horby, chair of the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag), told Times Radio: “The watchword has got to be caution really.
“It’s not clear exactly when or how big it will be, but there is, I think, inevitably going to be a bit of a rebound in the number of cases when things are relaxed.”
He added that the vaccination programme will minimise hospital admissions and deaths but warned it will not be completely effective.
“Now the extent of it really depends on how well we comply with the ongoing restrictions so we really have to take this step by step,” he said.
“I think we can be joyful and enjoy the freedoms but we’ve still got to realise there’s still a large number of people who’ve not been infected or vaccinated and so they will be at risk.”
It comes as a further seven deaths were recorded in the UK within 28 days of a positive Covid-19 death, the lowest figure since mid-September. The total death count in the UK now stands at 127, 087.
Around 61% of UK adults have now received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine and more than 14% have now been fully vaccinated.