Cinemas, theatres, concert and bingo halls CAN ALL OPEN

Fiction:

Cinemas, theatres, concert halls and bingo halls are not yet allowed to reopen.

Law:

The government has been sure not to tell anyone, but when quietly at 00:01am on 4th July the government revoked the lockdown restrictions in almost their entirety and replaced them with a “No. 2” set by the same title, it didn’t only allow the hairdressers and pubs to open the doors. Also removed from the list of businesses in Schedule 2 required to stay closed were cinemas, theatres, concert halls and bingo halls.

You might imagine that the restriction on gathering in groups of more than 30 is effective to prevent them opening.  You’d be wrong, however, as we have explained in our posts on brass bands and orchestras (published in response to a reader’s query) and, as we explained with reference to going to the beach, what precisely is meant by a ‘gathering‘.

Why are these venues still closed? They may be best placed to answer that, but perhaps it is the health and safety risk assessment that takes as its starting point that there is a significant danger from coronavirus which presents the biggest barrier. We will be posting on that soon. Please follow us on social media.

Wales Welsh Flag Free Stock Photo - Public Domain Pictures

In Wales, it is different. See our previous article on social distancing explaining why and our article explaining the difference in definition of a ‘gathering‘. The main UK legislation website does not, at time of this post and unlike the regulations for England, show within the principle regulations how they have been amended, but amended they were on 7 July and a document of sorts has been provided by the Wales Assembly Government. Initial observations are to see significant additional protections being added in Wales but we will consider this further in due course.

 

Warning: Law and circumstances can change very quickly.  Please note the date of publication of any blog post and check for any updates on the issues addressed. In any event, we do not condone or encourage breaching the law and neither the above nor any information posted on this website constitutes legal advice. It must not be relied upon as such and specialist legal advice should be taken in relation to specific circumstances. Please read our disclaimer.

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