Face coverings to be made compulsory in England

[Redolent]

Sky News just reporting that from Friday 24 July it will be mandatory to wear a face mask in shops/stores in England. Fines of £100 if you don’t (reduces to £50 if payable within 2 weeks).

I don’t want to wear a mask but I will, as a PP said if it stops someone vulnerable getting it then I’m doing it. It’s no different than other measures in place to protect others and no different to taking the measures I have always followed even before covid. Those who wonder why not in pubs and restaurants, apart from the obvious practical reasons, those are places of choice not necessity unlike supermarkets

How can anyone not agree with masks

I lip read so they make any communication incredibly difficult. If they come in in schools I don't know what I'll do. I won't be able to teach properly because I won't be able to hear the students.

Seems another bonkers inconsistent ruling.

It’s absolutely ridiculous. They weren’t deemed essential and made mandatory at the beginning of this crisis, not in April/May when we hit the peak, but now, just as most of us are beginning to get some resemblance of normality back and are trying to recover (mentally) they decide to force this upon us.

I wore one for the first time yesterday as I had a doctors appointment. I thought I was going to have a panic attack. I hate the feel of it. My nose started streaming with snot too for no reason and it all looked inside. But I guess I will just have to get used to it.

I do agree with this..but as someone who works in a supermarket I'm dreading to having to wear one for 8 hours a day. I can cope with up to an hour, after that it's so uncomfortable. I know the docs and nurses do and I have so much respect for them. Being in Wales I guess it'll be an extra week or 2 before we do this though but it's going to make work much more of a chore.

news.sky.com/story/second-coronavirus-spike-this-winter-could-be-more-serious-than-the-first-top-scientists-warn-12027912

This is why we will be wearing masks.

This will be the next way for the Covid Nazis to control and belittle people on social media and in real life.

I am asthmatic and find wearing a mask makes it worse. I have no idea why. I just can't get enough oxygen into my lungs. I tried taking my inhaler before but it didn't work.

I have therefore ordered a face shield and which hopefully will be more comfortable and according to some experts better than masks. Although the shield must be below your chin.

Of you’re asthmatic you don’t have to wear one

It has made me now wonder if doctors and nurses who need to wear masks as part of the job manage if they have asthma

There must be some asthmatic doctors out there

I hope it is made clear that random members of the public should not be challenging others about not wearing masks and if someone has a go at someone exempt for not wearing one it should be treated as harassment and potentially hate crime.

I have trigeminal neuralgia. If you're unfamiliar with it, it's a neuropathic condition which causes the nerves in your face to spasm and it's so painful, it's often referred to as the suicide disease. It can be triggered by a light breeze, putting on makeup, chewing, washing your face, touching your face. When it's really bad, I can have thousands of attacks a day.

I wore a mask to use the bus for the first time in four months a few weeks ago. As soon as I got home I had an attack which went on for days. When I attempted to wear a mask to get on a bus again, it happened again. So it's safe to say it's the mask that's causing the attacks (wearing a scarf in winter often does, too).

The one time I made it onto a bus, there was lady not wearing a mask on board. The other passengers were gossipping amongst themselves about how selfish she was and one complained to the driver. He refused to intervene (quite rightly) but it was obvious the poor woman was mortified. I suspect she was exempt but of course, the other passengers won't know that, or why. If they had believed her in the first place. Their reaction to her is why I'm worried about using the bus. Also, I don't want to have to explain my medical history to people who probably haven't heard of TN and (as if often the case when I tell people about it) think I'm exaggerating how debilitating it is.

I'm not sure how I'll go on now we have to wear them in shops. I've seen people with lanyards saying they're exempt - I'm not ashamed of my condition but neither do I wish to advertise it. But at the same time I don't want to be hit with a £100 fine and face judgement from other shoppers. It's awful that those with disabilities have to be othered like this.

To clarify, I absolutely support mask wearing - if I could wear one, I absolutely would. I also have an autoimmune disease which means I'm at higher risk of complications from covid so from a personal point of view I support anything which might help stop the spread. And it's just good manners. But I'm genuinely concerned for those of us who can't.

There are so many busy body’s around aren't there? If I see someone not wearing a mask when it’s compulsory, I couldn’t give a toss. It none of my business.
Why do some people think it’s their right to persecute people when they don’t know the facts? I don’t give a shit what other people do or don’t do.
The parking in disabled bays is a classic example, a man was punched and died by someone else challenging him, at an Asda in Luton some years ago. All because the aggressor didn’t think the man was disabled. Disgusting.

Masks should have been mandatory from the beginning, what the fuck does the Johnson govt know that the RoW doesn't? answers on a match head-

Once again, Johnson is playing catch-up. Masks have been compulsory across europe for many months now, let alone in Asia.

Same situation with the Track n Trace App.

"I'm not ashamed of my condition but neither do I wish to advertise it."

Exactly this - couldn't have said it better myself!

I wear a sunflower lanyard for air travel, and it's made a world of difference to how I cope with airports, but that is an environment it's known in where people are 'acceptably' nervous anyway (so less likely to notice).

I don't want to have to wear a badge to go to the supermarket, explaining I'm exempt, anymore than I want to be questioned by people who think they are entitled to know my medical history. I should have the right to tell - or not tell -who I want.

And as the provided example of the Blue Badge shows - people don't always believe you anyway!

I’m done with shopping then.This is an entirely political decision based entirely on the need to be seen to be doing something. They’ve totally screwed this up, as usual.
Same here. Things I used to go to the shops for I realise I can get on line delivered today or tomorrow. Was going to the garden centre today but have just ordered from Amazon where I can see total dimensions/reviews/ Qs and As etc and price comparison and save the cost of petrol to get there.
Shops used to be god for the interaction aspect but not worth going to be treated like a leper. RIP shops -bonanza profits for Amazon. Own goal BoJo.

Think they should split the shopping week with Sunday-Tuesday for the wet blankets. Wednesday - Saturday for everybody else
What a brilliant idea!!! Please tweet it.If only we have a few creative thinkers running the show!

Why are people saying it is political when other countries are also stipulating masks and some have been for months?

@AlecTrevelyan006
Nailed it - 🙁 completely agree.

And people saying RIP shops/High Street that will be down to you and people like you not going shopping

@Rebelwithallthecause we’ve had this conversation in other threads, and it’s pretty clear that if someone has a condition that means they can’t wear a mask, they don’t do a job that requires wearing them, which should be obvious really. Asthma is a broad illness, some of us with it are fine with masks some of us aren’t.

@Rockhopper81 same. I’ve ordered a sunflower lanyard but I don’t even know how many people will actually recognise it

@ineedaholidaynow

And people saying RIP shops/High Street that will be down to you and people like you not going shopping

Yes, that's the whole point.

Why would I want to walk around a busy and hot shopping centre in a mask? It won't be an enjoyable experience so many people will just stick to shopping online, as they have done for months.

Red toothbrush- I won't be replacing ours. It is an unnecessary accessory. They come off, get shoved in a pocket, get put on. Round my way they are used as a chin strap it would appear.
Good idea I have a neck piece thing I wear on hot sun to reduce wrinkles on my neck 😀 will just wear that all the time and pull up if I REALLY have to go into a shop but will avoid unless completely essential.

@BuffaloCauliflower thanks for clearing that up
I don’t have asthma so just assumed anyone with it would struggle with a mask (having seen family with asthma)

Must be terrible for someone training for years as a doctor or nurse to then develop asthma later in life which puts them out of work