Former North West health boss urges people to stick to the rules over fears of a further wave
It's after scenes circulated of crowds outside bars on Monday night
Former regional health bosses are urging people to reign it in and behave responsibly as lockdown restrictions relax.
It's after scenes over the last few days of queues and crowds as beer gardens and shops re-opened for the first time in months.
John Ashton, former Public Health Director for the North West, said: "I do understand the people's frustration and their desire to get back to some kind of normality, but it is very depressing to see the complete lack of self-control people have, and also to see the business community being willing to cut corners in terms of the social spacing and the layout of tables etc.
"We've got to be sensible about this, and unfortunately each time we've allowed our guard to drop, for example, last summer, before Christmas...we've seen this virus come roaring back and it seems quite possible that we will have yet another wave with yet more deaths, even though we've got the vaccine."
The vast majority of businesses have set up safely spaced seating areas in line with the rules to make it covid-safe for customers to come back.
However, the former regional health boss said any business which refuses to police the rules and 'cuts corners' with safety measures should be dealt with properly: "I personally think that the bars and restaurants that don't police this properly themselves should lose their licences. I think that's what needs to happen.
"There aren't enough environmental health officers or police officers to go round on a nightly basis to do this, but I think where there is evidence that places are not policing their own premises they should lose their licences."
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