After long hesitation, the British government decided to make the wearing of the mask compulsory in stores in England from July 24 to avoid a resumption of the epidemic of new coronavirus.
The wearing of the mask is currently mandatory only in public transport since June 15, and it was only recommended in enclosed public spaces.
Why wait ten days? "We want to give people some time to prepare," said Environment Minister George Eustice on Sky News.
"The evidence, the understanding" on the usefulness of masks "has evolved," he added. "As we loosen containment and allow more places to open, we also need to review the measures in place to limit the transmission of the virus and control it." "
This will not apply to pubs and restaurants, Eustice said on the BBC, or to supermarket workers. Violators will risk up to 100 pounds fine (110 euros), as is already the case in public transport.
"This little measure could make a huge difference"
The hardest hit country in Europe with nearly 45,000 deaths tested positive, the United Kingdom has lifted most of the restrictions introduced since the containment decreed on March 23 to combat the spread of the virus, but the different regions of the United Kingdom have adopted different timetables to make them more flexible.
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The British Medical Association, which represents British doctors, said the requirement to wear the mask in stores was "long overdue" and should be implemented immediately.
The mayor of London, Labor Sadiq Khan, hailed on the BBC this "flip-flop" of the Conservative government on the wearing of the mask, stressing that "this small measure could make a huge difference, combined with other measures".
The British Retail Consortium, a professional trade union for retail, praised the "clarity" of this obligation, after "contradictory messages" which made it "really difficult for people to understand what they should do".
