Lockdown lifting delay "body blow" for South Yorkshire's night-time economy
The Prime Minister confirmed the four week delay yesterday evening
We're told a the delay of so-called Freedom Day is a "body blow" for South Yorkshire's nightime economy.
Boris Johnson announced last night the fourth stage of the roadmap out of restrictions is being put back by four weeks to 19th July.
It means nightclubs will stay closed and social distancing and the rule of six will remain in pubs, bars and restaurants.
Nick Simmonite is chair of Unight which represents nighttime businesses in Sheffield - he says it's a body blow for the sector:
"The Prime Minister's announcement is devastating news for our industry. We were so looking foward to reopening and getting back to something like normal from next Monday.
"We will have issues - businesses will fold if we are not able to provide them with the right support that we've previously had.
"We have worked really hard and invested tens of thousands of pounds to provide extra staffing, extra cleaning, mechanical ventiallation systems. You name it, we've done it. This is a bit of a body blow.
"What we can't do is plan ahead. There are some of our group that are reluctant to even plan for 19th July. To be told we've got this kind of delay is just heartbreaking."
Tramlines Festival is due to go ahead from 23rd to 25th July.
Organisers said yesterday it would take them a few days to digest the guidance to see how it affects the festival's plans.
It's hoped the four week delay will allow more people to get vaccinated after worries about the Delta variant of Covid, which was first discovered in India.
Global public health expert at Sheffield University Andrew Lee thinks it's a sensible decision:
"What's going to beat the virus is vaccination. We've got to get vacccine coverage down to our younger adults, which is where a lot of infections are spreading at this point in time.
"And also need to make sure that our older adults get the double dose in - this takes time. And remember vaccines also take time to work.
"It's a bit like a race between us and the virus. So the faster we can get the vaccines out the faster we can increase protection levels in the community. That just reduces the damage that the virus can do and it reduces the number of people it can infect. So I think it's sensible giving us this four week period just to get ahead of the virus."