RETAIL NEWS
The pilots will start in April . The Government will bring the findings from across different sectors and different settings to determine a consistent approach to lifting restrictions on these events . Depending on the outcome of this work , the Government hopes to be able to lift restrictions on these events and sectors as part of Step Four .
Another very important area Step Three sees the return of is all adult indoor group sports . The Government intends to further ease limits on social contact , enabling the public to make an informed personal decision . It will remain important for people to consider the risks for themselves , taking into account whether they and those they meet have been vaccinated or are at greater risk when attending a group indoor event .
Step Four will take place no earlier than 21st June , and at least five weeks after Step 3 , following a further review of the data against the Four Tests . As before , the Government will announce one week in advance whether restrictions will be eased as planned .
As from 21st June and not before , the aim is to remove all legal limits on social contact . At this time guidance will be set out on how best to reduce the risk of transmission and to continue to protect those around you .
The main area of interest is the opening of events with larger crowd sizes and reduced social distancing , this will be dependent on the outcome of the results gathered by the Events Research Programme .
But with all Four Steps having a positive outcome we should hope to see a return to normality from June onwards .
International Travel
The last important area thats needs to be addressed is the return of international travel .
The Government ’ s objective is to see a safe and sustainable return of this area , for business and pleasure as soon as possible .
Restrictions on international travel will need to remain in place for the moment . However , the Global Travel Taskforce will report on 12th April with recommendations aimed at facilitating a return to international travel while still managing the risk from imported cases and Variants of Concern . Following that , the Government will determine when international travel should resume , which will be no earlier than 17th May . This decision will be dependent on the global and domestic epidemiological picture , the prevalence and location of any Variants of Concern , the progress of vaccine rollouts here and abroad , and what more we have learned about the efficacy of vaccines on variants , and the impact on transmission , hospitalisation and deaths . With the long term goal of opening international travel fully after 21st June when Step Four is introduced .
The introduction of the Four Steps programme has been widely received as a positive step for a gradual and sustainable return to normality . Each step does have the flexibility to alter the start date dependent on the outcome of the preceding step . A slow and cautious approach is welcomed as the best solution to get us all back on track .
Jane Soones - Editor of TEN magazine
6 MARCH 2021 twitter / facebook / instagram : @ trophexlive