Shops are set to stay open until 10pm six days a week when lockdown ends.
Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick said giving shops the flexibility to stay open later will keep communities safe while boosting the economy.
It comes as figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed Covid-19 infections are no longer falling and have plateaued at an estimated 1 in 340 people.
It is the first time community infections have not declined since late January. England’s third lockdown was imposed by Prime Minister Boris Johnson on January 5.
“In England, the percentage of people testing positive for the coronavirus (COVID-19) is likely to have levelled off in the week ending 20 March 2021,” the ONS said.
Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick said the UK’s vaccine programme will continue to be “world-leading”, despite a row with Europe over vaccine exports.
The Prime Minister also said he will look forward to going to the pub when they reopen in England on April 12, and will prioritise that over a trip to a hairdressers.
It came as 35 Conservative MPs voted against extending coronavirus laws for a further six months yesterday. Tory lockdown skeptic Charles Walker bemused others in the Commons after he announced plans to carry a pint of milk with him around London in protest against the restrictions.
