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Covid

The actual legal Coronavirus restrictions

16 replies

ShootsFruitAndLeaves · 26/03/2020 20:17

Effective 1pm 26th March 2020 in England

www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2020/350/made

4pm Wales

www.legislation.gov.uk/wsi/2020/353/pdfs/wsi_20200353_en.pdf

(1) During the emergency period, no person may
leave the place where they are living without
reasonable excuse.
(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1), a reasonable excuse includes the need—
(a) to obtain basic necessities, including food and medical supplies for those in the same household (including any pets or animals in the household) or for vulnerable persons and supplies for the essential upkeep, maintenance and functioning of the household, or the household of a vulnerable person, or to obtain money, including from any business listed in Part 3 of Schedule 2;
(b)to take exercise either alone or with other members of their household;
(c)to seek medical assistance, including to access any of the services referred to in paragraph 37 or 38 of Schedule 2;
(d)to provide care or assistance, including relevant personal care within the meaning of paragraph 7(3B) of Schedule 4 to the Safeguarding of Vulnerable Groups Act 2006(3), to a vulnerable person, or to provide emergency assistance;
(e)to donate blood;
(f)to travel for the purposes of work or to provide voluntary or charitable services, where it is not reasonably possible for that person to work, or to provide those services, from the place where they are living;
(g)to attend a funeral of—
(i)a member of the person’s household,
(ii)a close family member, or
(iii)if no-one within sub-paragraphs (i) or (ii) are attending, a friend;
(h)to fulfil a legal obligation, including attending court or satisfying bail conditions, or to participate in legal proceedings;
(i)to access critical public services, including—
(i)childcare or educational facilities (where these are still available to a child in relation to whom that person is the parent, or has parental responsibility for, or care of the child);
(ii)social services;
(iii)services provided by the Department of Work and Pensions;
(iv)services provided to victims (such as victims of crime);
(j)in relation to children who do not live in the same household as their parents, or one of their parents, to continue existing arrangements for access to, and contact between, parents and children, and for the purposes of this paragraph, “parent” includes a person who is not a parent of the child, but who has parental responsibility for, or who has care of, the child;
(k)in the case of a minister of religion or worship leader, to go to their place of worship;
(l)to move house where reasonably necessary;
(m)to avoid injury or illness or to escape a risk of harm.

Breach of this can be dealt with by fixed penalty of £60 (£30 if paid within 14 days), and doubling with each further fixed penalty to a maximum of £960, and with no payment discount.

There is therefore no legal limit on number or types or forms of exercise.

It does describe the items as "the need". However it could be argued that not all the things are strictly needs anyway. You could argue that if you went for a walk yesterday you don't 'need' one today.

But it seems to me more that you can leave the house to do exercise, and that's the end of that. You cannot leave the house to sunbathe in the park, say.

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ShootsFruitAndLeaves · 26/03/2020 20:18

Clearly one does not 'need' to attend a funeral any more than one 'needs' to do exercise, although at some point exercise is obviously a necessity if you don't want to die of preventable illnesses.

OP posts: