The last few weeks have been the oddest that I have ever experienced. Tackling the threat of Covid-19 has involved the most incredible joint effort of the British people and so many of you have contacted me sharing your experiences. Thanks to your efforts and sacrifices, the threat has been kept under control, with fewer infections now than at the peak, and this means that many of the restrictions we have lived with can now start to be relieved. This means that people can see more of their friends and family and enjoy many more of the activities that they have missed.
From Saturday 4 July, pubs and restaurants will be able to reopen, providing they adhere to Covid Secure guidelines, and also some leisure facilities and tourist attractions, if they can do so safely.
This is good news. We all want to get back to something that feels normal as soon as possible, but it is important to stress that these changes will not see everything back to normal. Social distancing still needs to be observed. Face masks may need to be worn and there will still be restrictions on how many people can meet up at any time. But getting more businesses open and allowing more contact between family and friends is vital for the health and wealth of all of us.
I have been involved in many discussions over the last few weeks with Ministers, Council leaders, representatives from some of our tourism and hospitality businesses here in the Moorlands and Visit England. We now need to support our local businesses, to make sure they keep being able to serve us.
The next few weeks and months will continue to be challenging, but if we all do the right thing, we will get through this all the quicker.
