Government clamps down as alcohol takeaways now banned in England

Last night Boris Johnson announced to the country that England would once again go into national lockdown in order to curb the spread of COVID.

The announcement came not long after a new, more infectious, strain of the virus had been discovered in the UK and another strain from South Africa also managed to make its way into the country.

But sadly, with this new lockdown comes new restrictions and if you think you can still nip down to your local for a takeaway pint, think again. These new restrictions once again call for the closure for hospitality businesses. However, restaurants will be able to serve food and soft drinks for delivery or takeaway but not booze.

The new ban is driven by concerns that residents will purchase their alcohol to-go from bars and pubs and then congregate with their friends nearby for a sneaky session.

The government has taken social distancing measures very seriously during the new lockdown and have stated that even though there is no allocated time limit for outside exercises such as walking or cycling, it should not be used as an excuse to sit down in the park for a drink.

Still, residents have been urged to keep their outdoor activities to one outing a day and to keep it local. New restrictions also mean that residents will only be allowed to meet with one member of their bubble or another household for exercise.

Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, spoke about the new restrictions, as the lockdown does not spell good news for the hospitality industry:

The announcement today adds to the woes of pubs as it shows they are a long way from reopening properly. The road to recovery for the pub sector just got longer.

Emma also revealed that unless more support was offered to the sector, many more people would be losing their jobs and businesses:

Given the circumstances, a wave of business failures is imminent unless a greater package of financial support from the Government is given to secure pubs and the brewers that supply them.