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Prime minister Boris Johnson was pictured wearing a mask for the first time during a visit to his constituency on Friday (10 July). He said: “I do think we need to be stricter in insisting people wear face coverings in confined spaces where they are meeting people they don’t normally meet.
“We are looking at ways of making sure that people really do have face coverings in shops, for instance, where there is a risk of transmission.”
Also on Friday, senior Whitehall sources said the government was considering making face coverings mandatory in shops. They said while no decision has been made, it is an issue that is being kept under review.
However, senior minister Michael Gove told BBC One’s The Andrew Marr Show: “I don’t think mandatory, no, but I would encourage people to wear face masks when they are inside, in an environment where they are likely to be mixing with others and where the ventilation may not be as good as it might.
“I think that it is basic good manners, courtesy and consideration, to wear a face mask if you are, for example, in a shop.”
Gove added: “Now of course the government at all times does look at the emerging evidence about what the best way to control the disease is. If necessary, and if tough measures are required and as we have seen in Leicester, obviously a very different situation, then tough measures will be taken. But on the whole… it’s always best to trust people’s common sense.”
Labour has called for clarity on the issue. Shadow cabinet office minister, Rachel Reeves, told the BBC: “People are increasingly wearing them but greater clarity from government about that would be helpful. People want to do the right thing but they want to know what the right thing is.
“I think it would inspire greater confidence and might encourage more people to go out and spend money if they see more people wearing face masks in shops.”
In Scotland face masks are mandatory in shops, while Wales recommends masks but they are not compulsory. In Northern Ireland, a spokesperson for Stormont’s Executive Office said it is monitoring the issue.
Figures from the Office for National Statistics reveal that 52% of adults in Britain who had left their home during the first week of this month, had worn a face covering.
