People gather outside a pub amid the spread of the coronavirus disease in London June 28, 2020. — Reuters pic
Restaurants, cinemas, galleries, museums, libraries and hairdressers can all welcome back the public, as can hotels, campsites, bed and breakfast, and self-catering accommodation. “We are all expecting it to be a historic day for the industry,” said Clive Watson, founder of the City Pub Group, which operates 47 pubs in southern England and Wales.
“If 10 per cent of them are profitable, that will be a surprise to us,” said chief executive Emma McClarkin, warning up to 18,000 were at risk of closure by the year end. “We are genuinely concerned that this could be a day of total chaos for the pub trade,” the owners of the popular Tyne Bar on the city’s Quayside said in a tweet.Government guidelines insist on “minimum contact” between staff and customers, with table service only. Drinkers will also have to give contact details in case of any outbreak.