Coronavirus news: Packed scenes spark concern as pubs reopen across England and holiday makers flock to coast
People relished their first pub drinks in more than three months, went to restaurants and finally got haircuts on Saturday as England took its biggest steps yet towards the resumption of normal life after the coronavirus lockdown.
Some pubs started serving from 6 am, sparking worries of over-indulgence, while a number of hairdressers were reported to have opened at the stroke of midnight.
In Spain, more than 200,000 people in the north-eastern region of Catalonia were sent back into lockdown after several new outbreaks of the coronavirus were detected.
Good morning and welcome to today's live blog - we'll be bringing you all of the latest updates on the pandemic from around the world as England reopens its pubs, restaurants, hairdressers and cinemas as part of the latest easing of lockdown restrictions.
Police are appealing for drinkers not to become a “drain on the emergency services” as they return to pubs for the first time in more than three months.
Pubs were allowed to reopen from 6am in England today and enhanced police patrols will be in place in many towns and cities.
Senior officers have raised concern that queueing and social distancing rules could increase tensions among drinkers, calling the timing and conditions for the reopening a “perfect storm”.
Bars, restaurants, cinemas, hairdressers, barbers, museums and art galleries are also among the businesses reopening today.
List of 59 countries where travel restrictions will be lifted from UK
The government has finally revealed its list of 59 countries where travel restrictions will no longer apply, including France, Spain and Italy.
Previously, a “double lock” prevented nearly all international travel: the Foreign Office (FCO) advised against all non-essential travel abroad, invalidating Britons’ travel insurance, and a mandatory 14-day quarantine period was imposed on all inbound arrivals to the UK.
However, from 10 July these restrictions will be lifted for those travelling between England and the destinations given the green light.
England's chief medical officer has said there is no “perfect” way to reopen Britain’s economy after the coronavirus lockdown – as Boris Johnson urges the public to “enjoy summer safely”.
Speaking at a Downing Street press conference on Friday ahead of the reopening of pubs, Professor Chris Whitty said the government was walking a “narrow path”.
“Either side of the path that we are on, there are risks. And we are going to have health problems, and economic problems, for sure,” he said.
Brits expected to spend £210m in pubs this weekend
Britons are expected to spend £210 million in pubs this weekend as more than one third return to their local.
About 35 per cent of UK adults said they planned to visit a pub in the first week they reopen after the coronavirus lockdown, according to new research by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR).
A “substantial proportion” of these are intending to go during the initial weekend in what is expected to be a major boost for the sector’s hopes of rapid recovery, the think tank said.
Pints were flowing in the pubs of Belfast on Friday afternoon after thirsty drinkers made the pilgrimage to their favourite watering holes following months of lockdown, writes Amanda Ferguson.
Northern Ireland’s hotels, bars, restaurants and cafes were given the green light by Stormont to open from 3 July, days after the Republic eased its hospitality rules and just ahead of England on Saturday.
In the Sunflower bar in Belfast’s popular Cathedral Quarter, district manager Suzanne Magee was relieved to be back at work.
Boris Johnson has said gyms will be able to reopen in a “couple of weeks”.
“We are going to reopen gyms as soon as we can do it in a Covid-secure way and I think that the date for reopening gyms at the moment, if we can do it, is in just a couple of weeks’ time,” the prime minister told LBC.
Outdoor gyms and playgrounds were included in the 4 July measures but indoor facilities have continued to remain closed because of the increased risk of virus transmission inside.
The Duke of Cambridge has paid a visit to a local pub in Norfolk ahead of its reopening on Saturday.
To mark the occasion, Prince William visited the Rose & Crown pub in Snettisham, where it’s been operating for more than 600 years.
While there, HRH spoke to the pub’s current owners Jeannette and Anthony Goodrich about the challenges pubs across the country have faced during the pandemic, such as having to furlough staff and apply for financial support.
Portugal furious after being left of quarantine-free list
Portugal's tourism sector has reacted with fury and disbelief at Britain's decision to leave Portugal off its list of almost 60 countries deemed safe enough for travel without coronavirus-related restrictions which would see holidaymakers have to quarantine for 14 days on their return to the UK.
This will be a major deterrent for British tourists, who accounted for 2.1 million of Portugal's foreign visitors last year, the second-biggest market after Spain.
Over a dozen countries have imposed restrictions on travel from Portugal as a high toll of several hundred new cases per day concentrated on the outskirts of Lisbon in the past month has worried authorities.
In a tweet, the foreign ministry said "it is absurd that a country, the UK, with 28 times more deaths than Portugal due to #covid-19, imposes quarantine on passengers from Portugal".
Britain has confirmed 44,131 deaths and 284,276 positive tests, while Portugal has reported 1,587 fatalities and 42,782 cases.
Portugal attributes this to its high testing rate, though Britain has surpassed Portugal in terms of tests per million people, according to the worldometer.info website.
Foreign minister Augusto Santos Silva told reporters: "We hope that this decision, which seems to us profoundly unfair and wrong from the British authorities, is corrected as soon as possible. Countries that are friends treat each other differently."
Easing of lockdown restrictions will lead to 'some young people overdoing it'
Easing of coronavirus lockdown restrictions across England will lead to some "decompression" and "overdoing it" by a minority of young people, a police and crime commissioner has said.
Marc Jones, Lincolnshire's Conservative Police and Crime Commissioner, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I think there will always be some over-doing going on and I don't think tonight will be any different from any other Saturday night, sadly, in that regard.
"I do think there is an element of decompression going on, particularly with younger people who have had some very responsible parents keeping them in over recent weeks.
"We are seeing some gatherings that police are having to deal with in parks and open spaces, and I think those kind of things are going to last for a few days and then we should start to get back to normal."
Tokyo seeks travel curbs as new infections tops 100 for third day
Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike urged residents of the Japanese capital not to travel beyond its borders today as new coronavirus infections topped 100 for a third day, public broadcaster NHK reported.
Tokyo confirmed 131 new cases of infections of the coronavirus today, NHK said.
Cases in Tokyo have risen to a two-month high, driven by the spread of the virus in the capital's night spots. Of today's tally, 100 were people in their 20s and 30s, Kyodo news agency said, citing Ms Koike.
Tokyo on Friday reported 124 new cases, up from 107 the day before, partly due to increased testing among night-life workers in the Shinjuku and Ikebukuro districts.
Chief cabinet secretary Yoshihide Suga said on Friday the government was not planning to reintroduce a state of emergency.
Curbs on movement pushed the world's third-biggest economy into a recession in the first quarter, with a deeper contraction expected in the April-June period.
People in Wales told not to travel more than five miles to English pubs The Old Stables Restaurant reopens at Allerton Manor Golf Club, Liverpool (Peter Byrne/PA) People in Wales must continue to follow the five-mile advice and stay local this weekend as pubs open over the border in England, the Welsh first minister has said.
Mark Drakeford said while those living very close to England may be able to visit pubs that are open, it would not be possible for the majority of people in Wales.
Police forces have also urged Welsh residents to heed the "stay local" advice while Transport for Wales said public transport should only be used for "essential travel".
While pubs in England were able to open from 6am today, those in Wales will only be able to operate outdoors from 13 July.
The "stay local" requirement in Wales will end on Monday when two households will be able to form one extended household - enabling families to be reunited.
Mr Drakeford said: "Please, wherever you are in Wales, this weekend is not a reason or an excuse to abandon all the things that you have worked so hard to achieve.
"Please continue to do those things and help to keep Wales safe."
Andrew Slawinski at the reopening The Toll Gate in Hornsey, north London (Aaron Chown/PA) Regulars have returned for much-anticipated drinks at the Toll Gate Wetherspoons pub in Turnpike Lane, north London.
Andrew Slawinski, 54, who bought a Guinness, described his first pub pint in three months as "gorgeous".
He told PA news agency: "It's like winning the [Premier] League."
A range of measures have been implemented at the pub including contact tracing forms, Perspex screens and compulsory table service.
There’s a gun at my head and two options: Either watch the last 20 years of Razzie “Worst Picture” winners or go to a pub on the day they reopen (today), writes James Moore.
As any public health expert will be only too happy to tell you, the coronavirus hasn’t just disappeared in a puff of microbial smoke. It’s still with us.
F1 records zero positive coronavirus results from 4,032 tests
Formula One has had no positive coronavirus results at this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix.
Organisers have today confirmed zero positive results were recorded from more than 4,000 tests on drivers, team staff and personnel who are at the Red Bull Ring, having carried out the tests through the week since Friday 26 June.
Traffic backed up on motorways as people enjoy relaxed lockdown rules
Motorists have reported queues of traffic, including many caravans, on major motorways in England this morning as people take advantage of being able to spend the night away from home for the first time in three months.
An RAC poll earlier this week showed some 31 per cent of motorists – equivalent to 10.5 million – planned on spending the night away from home this weekend.
Images shared on Twitter show vehicles packed on to the M5 near Exeter, in Devon.
Opinion: Now is the moment to do things differently in Lisbon
Like many cities, we’re reassessing our post-pandemic priorities and putting the key workers that drove Lisbon through the Covid-19 crisis at the top of the list. Now is the moment to do things differently, writesFernando Medina.
These images show Tom Hall and Heather McLaren getting married at St George's Church, Leeds, today as weddings are once again permitted to take place in England, with ceremonies capped at a maximum of 30 guests. (Danny Lawson/PA)
