Pubs who can't serve food will get one-off, £1,000 payment to make up for not being able to open under the new Covid-19 tiers, Boris Johnson has confirmed.
The PM said the impact on the pub and hospitality industry had been "disproportionate".
It followed widespread confusion after ministers were apparently unable to decide whether Scotch eggs are a starter or a substantial meal.
The distinction was suddenly important as struggling pubs decided whether they could open again during the new Covid tiers.
New Tier 2 rules, set to take effect tomorrow if approved by MPs tonight, say alcohol can only be served in pubs alongside a 'substantial meal'.
But landlords were left scratching their heads over the definition of a 'meal' - with many pubs seeing Scotch eggs and other traditional bar fayre as a potential lifeline.
The PM said: "Everybody can see the hospitality industry has borne a disproportionate burden of this crisis, and that's because we want to keep schools open and so on."
But he said the government would do "everything in our power" to protect the industry.
The PM told the Commons: "This is not another lockdown. Nor is this the renewal of existing measures in England.
"The tiers that I'm proposing would mean that from tomorrow everyone in England, including those in Tier 3, will be free to leave their homes for any reason.
"And when they do they will find the shops open for Christmas, the hairdressers open, the nail bars open, gyms, leisure centres, swimming pools open."
Confusion over bar food continued today, with No10 refusing to give more detailed explanations of what was and wasn't allowed.
Food minister George Eustice said yesterday that a Scotch egg would "probably" count as a meal.
But Mr Gove created further confusion this morning by suggesting it might not, and was "probably a starter".
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Mr Gove told ITV's Good Morning Britain: "As far as I'm concerned it's probably a starter.
"But the broader, more serious point I think we need to establish is there are reasonable rules about hospitality which are there to keep us all safe."
But minutes later he recanted his categorisation, telling ITV News it was a "substantial meal."
He said: "I myself would definitely scoff a couple of Scotch eggs if I had the chance, but I do recognise that it is a substantial meal."
Mr Gove said the definition of the term has existed in law for many years which allows families to buy 16-year-olds an alcoholic drink with a substantial meal, but he could not say what it constituted.
"They (pubs) already do know what the rules are and they have for years now," he said.
"My own preference when it comes to a substantial meal might be more than just a scotch egg but that's because I'm a hearty trencherman.
"The Government is relying on people's common sense."
