Pubs and restaurants will be able to continue serving customers on the pavement when they reopen after ministers extended outdoor licences for a year.
Licensing laws were relaxed last July to encourage al fresco eating and drinking and help high streets recover from Covid-19.
Pubs and restaurants will be allowed to reopen for outdoor customers no earlier than April 12, under the Government's 'roadmap' out of lockdown.
Landlords can apply for an outdoor licence for as little as £100.
And restaurants, pubs and cafes will be given automatic freedoms to provide takeaway services for another year.
Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick said: “We’re all looking forward to seeing pubs, cafes and restaurants open again as we start to gear up for what should be a great British summer.
“Therefore I’m delighted to announce an extension on temporary provisions for pavement licences for a further 12 months. This will give further certainty to businesses as they recover from the effects of the pandemic."
He added: “As lockdown restrictions ease in the coming months I’m also keen to highlight the range of measures we’ve put in place to help support the safe reopening of hospitality businesses and our high streets.
“It’s vital we work together to do everything we can to help these businesses prosper again. That is why I’ve written to councils calling on their support to use these measures in a pragmatic way to help support the high street, businesses and jobs, once restrictions allow them to do so.”
Prime Minister Boris Johnson today said an increased risk of transmission was "inevitable" in opening up schools again.
He told a Downing Street press conference: "Of course, there will be a risk of increased transmission, that's inevitable if you open up schools for millions of kids across the country. That is going to happen.
"But we think that we can do it now in the way that we are because we have the proportion of the population vaccinated that I described, the groups one to four, having had the immunity bedded in after least three weeks.
"As I said earlier on, we will continue to be driven by data and not dates as we approach the next steps - April 12, May 17, June 21, we will continue to assess where we have got to.
"The data on the vaccinations and the impact that they are having is very encouraging, but we have to remain very, very cautious."
