No legal compulsion to wear face masks once restrictions are lifted

[MurdockTheMouse]

Sky News reporting this morning that George Eustice has said with the removal of restrictions on July 19th will also come the removal of legal requirements to wear face coverings. I’m torn on how I feel about this.

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/news.sky.com/story/amp/covid-19-no-legal-compulsion-to-wear-face-masks-when-restrictions-are-lifted-minister-says-12340495

Even if the doorpersondoessomehow allow you in without a mask or exemption, you'll get nasty stares and probably also abuse from all the customers.
People who give nasty stares and abuse because someone is not wearing a mask should be ashamed. And I hope when all this is over they look back and realise they were being ridiculous.
Incidentslly I've forgotten to wear a mask and not had any abuse, as have other people on this thread.

I'm certainly looking forward to being able to hear people properly in shops, engage with my child when we go places and be able to breathe properly.

I didn't mind wearing it in the winter as it kept my face warm but in the summer its oppressive.

Not before time. I hate them but have persevered. Not so the woman at M&S this morning I overheard explaining to the security guy that she wasn't wearing a mask because she'd just had a blow-dry and a mask messing her hair up would 'negatively impact on (her) mental health'. He was but let her in without one. It's worth going to get a blow-dry.

@dopenguinsdance

Not before time. I hate them but have persevered. Not so the woman at M&S this morning I overheard explaining to the security guy that she wasn't wearing a mask because she'd just had a blow-dry and a mask messing her hair up would 'negatively impact on (her) mental health'. He was but let her in without one. It's worth going to get a blow-dry.

What a lunatic that woman in M&S was! Security should have thrown her out. 🤣

I really don’t mind wearing them for few minutes or an hour but I recently started my new job in health care and wearing a mask for 12 hours shift is torture

Excellent news if its true

Even if we assume that what this govt says is true and the requirement to wear masks does lift in July, it's worth noting that despite lifting the requirements for masks only just two weeks ago, Israel is already having to bring the mask rules back in due to the spread of the Delta variant: www.timesofisrael.com/israel-to-reinstate-indoor-mask-mandate-next-week-as-covid-19-cases-keep-rising/

So as much as I'd like to see them go, I'm not counting my chickens...

Just because youcan, doesn't mean youshould

Not that old chestnut. I thought we'd consigned that particular cringe worthy saying to 2020 and history

My second vaccine won't have taken effect until August, and I work in a shop, so I'm not looking forward to being breathed on by hundreds of strangers every day. I'll probably keep wearing a mask unless case numbers drop.

Masks slow down the relaease of aerosols into the air, even a bad mask will help to hold and knock off course some aerosols emitted from the directly hitting someone's face!

Anyway, I'll be glad to be free of them however we are in an experiment, so let's see what happens. Before winter.

Daisy unfortunately your mask is does more of to protect your customers from you, can you waer a mask and visor

While numbers are rising, I'll continue to wear one. Obviously no-one likes the things but, you know, pandemic.

Those who brag (there are some) about not wearing them (not talking about the forgetters/the exempt) and delighting in seeing other people bucking the rules, you must accept that those of us who are wearing them are keeping YOU a bit safer, while you're not bothered about US, right?

Oh no wait I forgot - you think people wearing masks have no effect whatever on the spread of infection don't you.

Yep.

They are the reason that cases are rising and will continue to rise.

Absolutely. Nothing to do with thousands of.passengers flying into the country bringing Delta with them

My neighbour and I are going to have a fire and burn them all when they go!

I was trying some jeans on in the Levi’s store the other week, and chatting to a lady who was waiting on her DH/DP in another cubicle. She had a baby of about 18 months, so I was doing the usual smiling/waving to him too - the woman said she was so sad for him that all his interactions with “the public” had been with their faces mostly covered up. It really made me sad for them both too.

I wear an FFP2 mask, so it does give me some protection.

@Judystilldreamsofhorses

My neighbour and I are going to have a fire and burn them all when they go!

I was trying some jeans on in the Levi’s store the other week, and chatting to a lady who was waiting on her DH/DP in another cubicle. She had a baby of about 18 months, so I was doing the usual smiling/waving to him too - the woman said she was so sad for him that all his interactions with “the public” had been with their faces mostly covered up. It really made me sad for them both too.

I pulled my mask up and down and played peek a boo with a baby on the bus the other day.

She was delighted.

I’m curious to know, How does everyone think giving up face masks will help us keep infections down considering today’s latest 16k positive cases? Are we just hoping it will go away on its own? Especially with autumn and winter not that far away it’s not exactly creating the ideal conditions to lower transmission and cases.

Also what about visiting your elderly relatives, yes they may be double jabbed but the risk is still there for them, going about our daily lives without precautions just doesn’t seem logical. Am I the only one who thinks this? I realise I’m probably asking the wrong demographic on this thread but it’s a genuine concern and I’m wondering if anyone shares it.

@Thewiseoneincognito honestly covid doesnt worry me anymore than flu or colds worry me now. We have vaccines and more effective treatment. I would never visit my elderly grandparents if I have any symptoms of illness so covid is no different. There’s always the worry of passing it on unknowingly to vulnerable people but I can’t live my life stressing over it and can’t be expected to. It genuinely isn’t on my radar anymore.

@Thewiseoneincognito

I’m curious to know, How does everyone think giving up face masks will help us keep infections down considering today’s latest 16k positive cases? Are we just hoping it will go away on its own? Especially with autumn and winter not that far away it’s not exactly creating the ideal conditions to lower transmission and cases.

Also what about visiting your elderly relatives, yes they may be double jabbed but the risk is still there for them, going about our daily lives without precautions just doesn’t seem logical. Am I the only one who thinks this? I realise I’m probably asking the wrong demographic on this thread but it’s a genuine concern and I’m wondering if anyone shares it.

Clearly wearing face masks isn't helping keep infections down, is it? So what's the difference.

My only elderly relative is my grandfather, I wouldn't patronise him by assuming what I think is "safe" for him, I let him make his own choices on what contact he chooses to have. Before he was vaxxed he was only happy meeting outdoors which I respected, now he's had both jabs he's happy with indoor contact, I've never worn a mask in his house.

On a personal level I'm not scared of Covid so I'm not bothered about mask wearing from my own perspective.

@Thewiseoneincognito question for you, how long do you expect those not vulnerable to covid to restrict their lives to protect the vulnerable? Now that hospitalisations and deaths will be lower?

I'll be keeping mine on to hide my very impressive beard that's sprouted since the menopause

@NannyAndJohn

Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.

And let's see what happens with Delta+ before assuming that everything will open up, shall we?

Predictable!

Out of interest how long are you proposing to wait to “see what happens” with Delta+? Weeks? Months? Years? Until Delta++ comes along? You may be willing to put your life on hold indefinitely but you shouldn’t assume that everybody is. Nobody has a crystal ball- the real test of how this virus will behave and how the pandemic will pan out is by seeing what happens when we open up (with most vulnerable vaccinated etc)...if we never open up then how are we meant to move forward?

I actually think it's incumbent on those of us who are less anxious to stop wearing them and try and help society get back to normal.

I have to pick up prescriptions at a pharmacy window at the GP - OUTSIDE. There is no requirement or sign asking for masks. There is perspex between me and the pharmacist and I always stand a metre away when asking. And yet most people queueing etc wear masks. I have stopped because I think it is ridiculous but I do get some funny looks - not from the pharmacists though.

And I went away recently to a holiday resort and the level of paranoia locally there was insane.

It has to stop. So I feel that by acting normally, it sets a standard to encourage others to do the same.

Long winded way of saying I will stop wearing masks if they become optional!

@Waxonwaxoff0 I’d be curious to know what our numbers could have been without the mask mandate in place wouldn’t you? Yes the numbers are going up now and that’s with restrictions in place and a fair amount of people vaccinated. Imagine the rise without those restrictions in place.

@Overthebow I wonder how the CEV young people whose lives will be affected immensely by lifting the mask mandate will feel. It’s an inconvenience to us to wear a mask but their entire life becomes an incredibly difficult balancing act trying to navigate a world which is essentially turning its back on them simply because they’ve had enough. It just doesn’t sit well with me.

Masks make fuck all difference

It’s a reminder and a virtue signal